


The Four of Hope / Nieringen

by Venithil



Category: Nier Gestalt | Nier
Genre: After Ending, Age Difference, Amnesia, Angst, Angst and Feels, Blood and Violence, Consensual Sex, Consensual Underage Sex, Cussing, Derogatory Language, Dirty Talk, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Futanari, Hermaphrodites, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Underage Prostitution, Love, Minor Injuries, Older Woman/Younger Man, Other, Porn With Plot, Post-Canon, Resolved Sexual Tension, Romance, Sex : Characters aged 15 and up, Story Arc, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-11
Updated: 2018-03-30
Packaged: 2018-05-06 04:21:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 17
Words: 147,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5402816
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Venithil/pseuds/Venithil
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been over three years since Kainé was thanked by that girl for something she was not sure she did. Over three years since she first cried looking at that flower. Over three years she continued to survive in a world that was lost, frustrated by not knowing why she was even there, or why did she feel like she was abandoned. But when evil and good of humanity no longer matters, when conscience and desire for change can develop in people deprived of something important and people who aren't even human alike, a seemingly random event can at times restore hope. And with hope comes the understanding of something very special.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. 1a - Lost Person, Lost World

**Author's Note:**

> First of all, this story is based off of the characters and relationships between them from the Nier : Replicant version, featuring a younger Nier and Yonah as his little sister. The story will still use Romanized/English forms of character names, so only minor knowledge and acceptance of differences between Gestalt and Replicant versions is required to read and enjoy this.
> 
> It also features certain call-outs to the game that lead to Nier, Drakengard, that become strong at several points in the story; knowledge of Drakengard shouldn’t be necessary to enjoy the fic, but could lead to a certain insight into what the heck may be going on at times.
> 
> Second of all, this ending follows Ending D and it’s “sequel”, ending “E”, from Grimoire Nier’s short story “The Lost World” (This is a story made by the game's creators. Its fan translation can be read online in the original document or partially through Nier's Wiki page). Chapter 1A is a small alteration of the fan translation of the short story and contains direct quotations from the version of the work that can be found online (Through Nier Wikia or the original document), translated to an extent by numerous fans. Credit goes to people who managed the partial translation of “The Lost World” novella. All of the chapters following it and the rest of the story are entirely my work.
> 
> This work presumes the Nier ‘resurrected’ in this particular ending/branch is his 16 year old version from the first part of the Replicant game, rather than a suggested possible Nier from a far earlier visit to the forest. It goes against the official interpretation of a certain part of the game’s ending in relation to several characters while trying to remain as faithful to the game and supplemental materials as possible. It also introduces a certain interpretation of how Ending “D” worked in order to facilitate certain plot points.
> 
> While mentions of acts of dubious consent may be present in certain characters’ pasts, all scenes depicted in this story are essentially consensual. Characters aged 15 and above will be the only ones depicted in sexual situations. Kaine’s potty mouth is preserved with occasional inside joke on its censorship, so expect some swearing every chapter. All explicit smut scenes will be separated in new chapters as “Interludes”, so reading the story without the interludes allows for skipping of sexual content (or vice versa), but not flirting, teasing, and sexual tension. Finally, this story is not meant to be excessively long, so I can finish it without losing too much out of my other projects.
> 
> The point of the story is to allow myself to expend my creativity in the Nier's universe before the sequel cements certain things and restricts it, and to allow certain further character development and potential "happy" endings insofar as it appears possible in Nier's world. Since the plans for the sequel suggested at least partial survival of humanity somewhere, this story is also meant to end with hope and suggestions of how that might've been possible *without* undoing the neccessary tragedies and horrific events that unrolled in the events of game proper and its prologue.
> 
>  
> 
> Disclaimer : Nier, Nier Replicant, and Grimoire Nier are creations of Cavia and property of Square Enix. This is a non-profit fanfiction work. The first chapter contains direct quotations of fan translations from Grimoire Nier interspersed with original content; further chapters are entirely original. Credit goes to the fans that participated in the translation of "The Lost World" story, which contains Ending E.
> 
> This story has several call-backs to Drakengard as well. Drakengard is creation of Cavia and property of Square Enix.

**Disclaimer :** Nier, Nier Replicant, and Grimoire Nier are creations of Cavia and property of Square Enix. This is a non-profit fanfiction work. The first chapter contains direct quotations of fan translations from Grimoire Nier interspersed with original content; further chapters are entirely original. Credit goes to the fans that participated in the translation of "The Lost World" story, which contains Ending E.

This story has several call-backs to Drakengard as well. Drakengard is creation of Cavia and property of Square Enix.

 

**Chapter 1a - Lost Person, Lost World**

 

After three and a half years of that sensation of loss, three and a half years of being more or less alone, and even more time from defeating the machine of the P-33 model in Junk Heap back when she was with others, Kainé found the robot’s endurance and attacks inferior to her own strength yet again.

After that fight, the dreadful sensation of having forgotten something important dawned on her yet again.  She could remember that type of machine, the shape, its properties and abilities. She could more or less remember when she went against it. She could even remember beating that kind of machine, but she was fairly certain she didn’t do it alone. Even if it was possible for her to do it alone now, there was a person alongside whom she has grown to this level. She did not defeat that thing alone back then. She remembered blocking out the almost pleading wails of the shade that was beside it, which only made sense to her, and deciding to not speak of them to the people around her.

So, who was at her side?

The person that seemed to be Emil – in his skeletal form, and reconstructed with a bonus second set of arms - was by her side now, but it wasn’t always him who helped her. When he first met her, Emil was a boy with a single specific ability, not the weapon of magical destruction that he was changing into now. But there were so many fights in her memory that seemed to have a hole in them, this just being a refresher of them happening.

The mocking, but oddly ‘friendly’ being that claimed to rule over what was masqueraded as the Forest of Myth up until that point claimed it knew. It knew about that important person she couldn’t help but push into a weird limbo inside of her mind, where they not quite existed nor were entirely forgotten. Every single struggle to remember ended with a fleeting thing she couldn’t hold on to, and even her immense skills would be restricted by stress and confusion of all these thoughts going straight into her head. And she was battling a robotic imitation of herself, something that apparently should be considered dangerous… yet still could hold her own, and with Emil’s help her victory was becoming clear even in the overwhelming situation. Noticing the power source being what once appeared as a tree, Emil directed her to attack, to strike at said core.

“Using the power of magic to fuse machines, humans, and plants together… this is what has become the truth of this world.” The odd interface of the surreal, techno-floral construct continued to ramble on after its little lesson about the future. “And yet, it seems some in this world have become even more amazing than this sort of combination. A Replicant like you could’ve reached this level… Amazing! Amazing!”

 

As she uncovered the core, the power cables seemed to become almost animate, but whether it was out to strike at her or because Emil was now using magic power to help her push through further, she did not know. Clearly, the “Weapon number 7” was more amazing than her, but she also felt like there was something deeply wrong in the interface’s statement.

Like there was someone who surpassed her before, or like her not being qualified to be named a ‘Replicant’ while she reached this level, perhaps. Or maybe it was something different.

The core was shining more brightly, with an overpowering white light, until, suddenly, everything seemed to quiet down, and she could almost make out a shape through the blinding brightness.

She could tell that this shape was important. Very important. Something special. Reaching out, it seemed to just barely evade her touch, swaying to form the shape of a person being pulled just outside of her reach.

A person. Was it *that* person?

_“…..iné…. don’t….”_

It was the first sound she heard In what felt like a small eternity. Definitely the first one she heard since the light has become almost blinding, overwhelming her senses.

But it felt different. Like the most important sound she heard in years… ever since she spoke to that girl. Ever since she cried at the thought of something so sublime and kind slipping out of her mind seemingly forever, and eluding her ever since, in front of a young woman whose name she knew, whom she was convinced she needed and managed to save, but couldn’t really remember why. Just as then, tears started to flow down her cheeks.

_“…….go back….. do not………. come here….”_

_“……don’t…..”_

She touched it, but the shape slipped away. She lost that incredibly important thing yet again. How come? It felt like a huge chunk of her was missing, but could be recovered if she only could get that one single thing. And yet, she could never push through enough to actually get it. Even now, when it felt like this thing was right in front of her. The overwhelming feeling of familiarity allowed her to not sink into despair, instead channeling it into anger.

_\-  This is pissing me off! This is my life! I’ll decide what I’ll do, how I’ll live! I don’t need anyone telling me what to do! It was my decision to live to a point and die for someone’s sake! It’s my decision to live and die by the sword!_

She tried pushing through, but felt so… powerless. Tears wouldn’t stop. In fact, they intensified at the perspective of losing that important thing again.

_\-   … By the sword! As your sword! I must! I must, I must get it back! I’ll get it back no matter what price I have to pay!_

 

Something subtle pushed her, but it was enough to break that odd feeling of immersion she herself could not shatter with her own strength. A quiet whisper in her ear, something passable, ethereal and easy to miss, something she barely recorded, carried a message which caused the shape to start stabilizing. She couldn’t tell what was going on, but the vague silhouette now seemed to just restrict itself to two relatively similar shapes now. However, the gap in height and build between those two shapes was pretty immense, which made it all the more confusing for Kainé – for some reason, they both seemed familiar.

The words of some other familiar voice seemed to resonate deep inside of her, mocking as they were. Whatever or whoever did this gave her both the ultimate and the penultimate push, something she might’ve not been able to do with her own strength.

“I’ll leave this guy to you, lingerie woman.”

Not just seeking him. She’s been entrusted with him.

_\- Stop screwing around. How can you just disappear all by yourself!?_

That person was wiped from her mind somehow, but she couldn’t help understanding it was part of some kind of decision on their part. A difficult final choice, perhaps.

_\-  I am the one who will decide what the meaning of my life is! I want to finally be able to decide , to do whatever I want with my own life! And you shove one without you down my throat?_

The shape was finally solid. The shorter of the two final shapes seemed to be its final form. Perhaps it was due to something related to the past, the time during which whatever power ruled here was able to capture the memory of this important person at.

It didn’t matter. Whether it was a brat or a grownup, for some reason this person seemed to be drawing her to themselves… to himself, strongly. And yet, he kept being pulled just out of her grasp. She’d stand for it no longer.

_\-  GET BACK HERE YOU FUCKING BASTARD!_

 

She felt a solid form finally cradled in her arms, and the odd white light disappeared, exchanged for everyday blue sky. It was clear, and there were no trees to cover it up. The forest seemed to disappear, and with it even the transformed central tree, the “Sleeping beauty”.

She was inside a giant techno-organic flower, right at its stamen. Alive and well, and holding this person important to her in her arms. A kind person she used to see every day during that travel which ended with her learning so many of this world’s cruel truths and managing to ‘free’ herself of the ‘demon’ possessing her until now, through means she couldn’t recall, reasons she couldn’t remember, a way that was wiped from her memory – with the shade Tyrann no longer around to explain.

Emil floated behind her, climbing the odd, new construct that from his perspective somehow resembled the flower Kainé often carried around in her hair. He felt… something from seeing the shape she was holding in her arms, the form of a gentle person in deep slumber. Memories that were part of what caused his drive to reconstruct herself came back and then flashed away, as if there was a barrier still holding them from reappearing.

But they met again. They managed to meet again with the being that was torn out of their memories, and looking at Kainé’s face, it was clear she recognized the teenage boy, quite a bit shorter than her, sleeping soundly in her embrace.

 

And she somehow did. She understood there was a deep paradox about what was going on. The chasm in her memories reacted in weird patterns to the person in front of her, reminding her that originally it was her who lost time compared to him, but now the situation appeared reversed. The last time she saw this person, both of them must’ve been different, and Emil’s body looked different as well, shattered as it was during one of the final fights in the Shadowlord’s ‘castle’.

Come to think of it, she could finally remember something about how the owner of that castle looked like, for some reason.

But it didn’t matter. She met this person before, in the shape he was in now.

And now they were together again, against all logic.

An Emil with a slightly different body, an older Kainé, and a younger version of “him”…

Yes… his name…

_\- Nier…_

The response to her saying the name was a quiet gasp of the boy trapped in a half-skeletal, half-machinelike body, caused by yet another discrepancy between what he remembered, and what he wanted and was supposed to remember…

And slow, wistful breathing from the kind figure wrapped in her arms. This person gave something to her,  or gave something up for her, even if what was taken in return included the feeling she got, the feeling of being used to that person’s presence.

The memories didn’t flood back, but somehow, she knew they were there.

She would not forget this person again… and in time, perhaps, she’d be able to recall all what was lost.


	2. 1b - Haze of Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emil and Kainé have their own moment to talk and reconnect as they consider just what their connection is to the boy they rescued. The anxiety just increases the more time he spends apparently asleep.

After they made sure the perimeter was clean of shades and dangerous creatures, Kainé and Emil carried the sleeping young man out of the area that was once the Forest of Myth, and now was restricted to a single flower-like shape which indeed seemed to resemble a Lunar Tear flower. The villagers were long gone and with them, whatever knowledge of these events and this place they might’ve had.

 

She didn’t know if it was just to fool her, but after recovering that slumbering form from there and instinctively recalling some of the meanings behind the flower she carried in her hair other than the ones related to her grandmother, Kainé couldn’t bring herself to completely destroy that one last piece of freaky force that was awakened in one of the places they’ve visited on that journey. She hoped she wouldn’t end up regretting the choice of leaving it behind.

It must’ve been four years since she was in that forest… no, nine years. After all, she lost a couple of years herself. Although they did eventually go back there four years ago, she remembered.

 

There was a shade of an expression on Emil’s cruelly barren head, which only served to remind Kainé how much the boy must be trying to understand the situation. Before she mentioned the most important thing, Kainé gently placed Nier’s sleeping form on the ground, and put her hand atop of Emil’s gray, naked head.

 _\- Took you long enough to finally show yourself, Emil. I was sure… I was sure we lost you forever. Seems like you got yourself an extra set of limbs, too._ – Kainé indicated. Indeed, Emil’s body now sported four hands , but was otherwise identical to the one she first saw him with after her pertification.

 

Emil’s empty eyesockets were still directed to the form on the ground, but he tried nodding.

_\-  I didn’t think I’d survive that spell. And just when I thought I recovered, I messed things up and got teleported to the same spot again. Basically I survived only as a head, and took almost exactly one hundred and sixty days to get myself to a good place and obtain enough materials that I could even begin to recover my body. Well, rather, it took eighty days… but I had to do it twice due to a magic mishap._

_\- So… half a year. But I haven’t seen you in about six times that long._

_\- The repairs took time, too. Plus, you weren’t all that easy to find, either. Always moving around, the villagers at that village didn’t want to talk to me, much less about you… but you were making a name for yourself with the surviving people. Helping them travel more safely now that… there’s more of them. Relapsed Gestalts._

_\- Shades._

_\- Yes. Your reputation may make you sound dangerous and odd, but I was happy to discover your body is fully your own again. How did that…_

_\- I don’t remember, Emil. I can recall so much, but I feel like there’s a whole bunch of things that was way more important that I cannot remember. Tyrann’s not inside me or beside me anymore, and he might’ve been the only one able to explain._

_They both gazed upon the figure sleeping on the ground beside them. Kainé’s eyes teared up a little again. She crouched a bit and wrapped her arms around the little boy trapped in the body of a skeleton-like magical weapon._

_\-  I don’t know the details, Emil… or rather, I think I still cannot recall the details. But this person… this person is someone very special to me. To us. N… Nier. Fuck, why am I only remembering this name now? Why is it so damn agonizing to say it now?_

_\-  Because something happened. Something at a level of magic and mystery that’s hard to understand. People who were there and are still alive… those people can’t remember him now. We can’t remember. But, if it was just a blockade of some sorts, or a spell cast at that point, then…_

_\-  That girl… Yonah’s diary. The entries were there, but partially emptied. Some gone completely. As if someone took the time to remove only certain words from entries of a young girl’s diary. I thought it might’ve been from it being left for five or so years in one place, but… why’d only some entries be affected that way? One entry even said someone left completely unexplained told Yonah about a “Kainé” in a letter. Is Nier… related to Yonah? That’d make sense. The diary was so butchered that several entries made absolutely no fucking sense whatsoever. If he was the reason I found her there in the first place, if he was the person who helped her survive at that place even when she was sick… It’d make sense. Fuck, my head hurts from thinking about this._

_\- He’s… young. I don’t know why, but he feels a little too young to me._

_\- About as old as Yonah would be now, right? It was three and a half year or so since we entered that castle, so they’re both roughly sixteen. They look alike. Siblings?_

_\- What kind of result, mishap, magic ‘miracle’ would drive a brother out of his sister’s entire life, *and* her diary? What could just alter the memory of her entire life just to make her forget about a close person like this._

 

Kainé shook her head. With a heavy sigh, she sat down on the ground.

\-  I feel… it’s a weird point between sadness and utter rapture. I mean, you’re alive. Nier… is here. I can almost recall everything… Those white hair of his, I’ve seen them. Once in a while, when I thought really hard, when I saw something or someone that should’ve been familiar, I’d see those cute hair atop of a figure. Lean, pretty face… I’ve seen him, though he did seem older, usually. I wish there was a way I wouldn’t have to worry about this. I wish us meeting together again would be all about happiness, but…

 

Emil seemed almost as worried as her, despite how difficult it was for him to show any kind of emotion whatsoever on his featureless 'face'.

_\- I didn’t get flashes or anything like that, but as I traveled… I knew I had to stop you and Weiss from killing each other over silly stuff. Meet up with you. But I knew you and Weiss shouldn’t have been alone together. You ‘d never survive with just each other. There had to be a third person I wanted to meet. So it was Nier all along…_

_\- Weiss is gone. I traveled with Yonah to get her back home, I’ve seen her journal… but it explained nothing. I was alone since then, just burning out the frustration, trying to grasp the memories, then escaping from the fact they escaped. I did hang around that village, but I never knew why I tried to stick around that place… other than taking jobs dealing with destroying Shades or killing dangerous animals for the villagers. Back at the Shadowlord’s place, we… Weiss… I lost you and Weiss that day. Could it be I lost not only you two, but…_

 

It was there. A faint memory, but once it must’ve been the strongest she had. Before Weiss was gone somehow, before the books fell on the ground and turned to just books, but after Emil sacrificed himself against that spell.

There was a reason she knew about these two girls. The android twins. They were connected to Yonah’s village somehow. Through someone. And Yonah was connected to her somehow, through someone. Just being Emil’s writing buddy wouldn’t cut it if she felt like she remembered Yonah’s name from before she met Emil. But she couldn’t follow that string of memory yet.

There was that realization. When Emil fell, she managed to burst out. But if she flailed at someone, it’d have to be Weiss. And this memory would not be so dreadfully bittersweet if the person she struck out back then was Weiss – rather, she wouldn’t even remember it.

 

She punched the sense back into someone, but before she could speak the harsh words to really, truly go along with it, a realization inside of her stopped her from doing one thing… and her own sheer stubbornness stopped her from doing a vastly different thing.

This stubbornness always got in the way, but it was part of the reason why this memory was so strong and so bittersweet.

Nier was there. It must’ve been one of those few moments she was on the verge of just breaking down and pouring everything out, but she held it in… because he was the one to break down.

So they steeled themselves. They recovered. They lost Weiss… to that other book. Noir. But Noir wasn’t the end of their journey. She looked on as something unveiled.

Could it be she wasn’t the one to save Yonah at all?

Who was the Shadowlord anyway? He was a Shade, or rather, a Gestalt, but *whose*? Why was even the look of the Shadowlord seeming a little clouded in her mind now?

_\- Emil… You… can tell, right? What I’m thinking of._

_\- You’re remembering what happened after you thought I died. Just before we could try and save Yonah… The hole is too huge in that place. Why do you even know the name? Why did we try to save her so badly? Why was she there? For some reason, your memory can fill in these holes. It’s harder for me, but I can tell your memory can fill in these holes just fine._

_\- We’ll ask him when he wakes up._

_\- What if he doesn’t remember? I mean… I can feel he was an important person. I can slowly feel him coming back. I think he was the third person I wanted to meet, other than you, other than Weiss, I know he was the one who made you two somehow stick together, and it makes sense if he was the one to bring us to the Shadowlord. But the hole’s just too huge, and I don’t even know how your mind’s filling it up. I’m grasping at straws and barely forcing myself to remember, I’m trying to use magic to tag along with what’s happening in your head, but… I know so little, still…_

_\- I don’t think… it’s my mind. You said it yourself. Something happened. Wiped the slate, made us… forget. But not entirely, at least not for me. And the holes in memory are too huge. We fought together a lot, didn’t we? But I can’t remember landing the killing strikes. Usually, it was Weiss' spells, but... someone always landed the killing strikes. Weiss was a magic book, and you only gained these abilities so late… and at that cost. We didn’t fight alone. All along, someone other than me was also doing the killing. Someone other than me wanted to kill Shadows… Gestalts… as many as they could. I don’t know how it’s related to how special Nier was, but maybe it was him always fighting with us, even harder than us._

Emil nodded.

\- But if he was with us all along… why can’t we remember? How come we could… get him back here?

-  The tree’s and forest’s memories are nothing like a human’s. And the magic might’ve not worked on it. I mean, it’s technology far more advanced than we can hope to understand, combined with magic far purer than most of us could accomplish no matter what we gathered. Well, maybe except you.

Emil nodded slowly, as if striving to find a point to disagree with, but finding none.

\- Yes. If the Sleeping Beauty could recall so many memories and dreams from so long ago… it might even remember someone we can’t remember no matter how hard we try. But… Why him? Was it him who interacted with the Tree the most? We were here… once or twice, I think. With you, that is.

-But one way or another, no matter how much of Nier would be recorded by that tree…

\- It wouldn’t be the Nier that could tell us why he’s gone from our minds, no. But… even I can tell he was special, important. Even remembering so little despite trying magic. So I think even if you need to take time recalling what you can recall, you can treasure him even now… with that little. And in time, things will explain themselves. Maybe in time, we’ll be able to remember.

\- Even if he doesn’t know everything… no, even if he does remember only the barest, smallest amount of things as well, I’m sure just talking to him will be helpful… somehow.

 

Kainé closed her eyes. She could picture it clearly now, and the memory did not flee away. This was her point of contact with the real events. The reason why this emotion and memory were so strong and so clear was the incredible shock and the realization of it. They thought Emil was dead, but the bittersweetness, with a huge and vastly larger helping of the bitter part, was not because of that. Not entirely.

It was because of how much she wanted to express to Nier at that point, and how little she was able to.

Just the punches, the kicks. The pain. That was her final message to Nier about what connected them.

Not the main realization. Not the feeling she had when she looked at that handsome face.

It was older than the cute one right now. This Nier was probably the one from when they first came here. His memories might’ve not been quite so expansive. He wouldn’t remember why she was alive despite trying her goddamn best to die for his sake.

He probably wouldn’t remember the moment where she wanted to tell him how she *really* felt. It was quite likely that for him, it just never happened at all.

But if the essence of whom he was would remain the same, that didn’t matter much. They were all just shells of true people, at least according to the twin android-girls from the past that was rewritten. Her time with Tyrann helped her accept it as truth, a truth she repressed despite almost learning it through him, through the shades’ voices, even before it was spelled out for her.

 

This wasn’t a new, blank Replicant. This Nier met her. It might’ve been just a crippled, sliced off part of the Nier she wanted so badly to comfort, to kiss back then… but it was enough to make her remember how much she should treasure him, only barely, only instinctively.

She hoped that, from that one foothold, that one point, her memory would become clearer, and the void left behind by whatever forced her to lose and forget Nier would be filled.

_\- It’s been more than an hour… I hope this brat wakes up sooner rather than later._

_\- Don’t be impatient. He may give us more riddles and questions than answers._

_\- Emil, that guy’s been just beyond my gaze, in the back of my head, for over a thousand days. And I’ve been losing pieces of him all the time, only to get back such an empty, but beautiful picture now. I’m all out of patience._

 

Kainé’s tears have been flowing very freely when it came to that boy, it seemed. But this time, she felt almost ashamed of them, because that one little moment reminded her just how much she lost back then. So she hid her face in the palms of her hands and whimpered.

_\- I’m so out of this shitty thing called patience, Emil. I’m burned out on all of it, but there’s no way I can… try to wake him up. No way to deny him sleep after… feeling like it’s because of me, somehow. This goddamn brat looks so fucking cute doing it, too._

_\- I understand, Kainé. It really is a point between utter sadness and utter joy, isn’t it…_

_\- Fuckers saying the two cancel each other out like fire and water. My heart can’t take it. How the fuck is that cancelling each other out?_

_\- They don’t really cancel each other out, either. Steam, Kainé. This is just… lots and lots of steam._

_\- It fucking stings in the eyes, Emil. This steam stings in the eyes way too fucking much. Shit._

_\- It’s the one good thing about my body right now, Kainé. Can’t lose all the water through… crying it out._

_\- Shut up. Stop being so wise and sad all at once. It’s… great to have you back, Emil. I’m sorry. Today’s been just too sharp, too piercing, too painful of an ending… to three and a half years of whatever the hell that was._


	3. 1c - Awakening

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kainé and Emil continue protecting the unconscious Nier until it seems he's finally able to awake. His memories are far removed from what the world has come to, and they need to make him understand - or create the illusion things are not as they are.

It was about time for them to rest. Kainé did receive some damage in the fight earlier, and her recovery was no longer as fast as back when she was possessed, although he physical strength or speed did not decrease. So, with Emil’s insistence, she rested, but such minor wounds were rather simple for his magical ability and the small amount of medicines she carried around. Although Emil’s power and control over his magic improved, she understood how difficult it was to direct magical energies to properly ‘fix’ a body, so was well aware how difficult to perform even minor magical healing of traditional wounds would be.

_\- So, we’re taking turns for rests… Do make sure to wake me up if the kid seems to be. I’m worried about him, as a matter of fact. I think it’s been longer than your usual, full night of sleep. Maybe we should take him somewhere safe, like… would your mansion be all right?_

_\-  I wasn't sure if I should return to Sebastian and keep showing myself to him after our journey, but eventually I did. It’s a good base of operations and I can recover there, but I don’t believe it is any less… grim than when you’ve been there the last time. While we’ve managed to clear that place when we adventured, you know quite well the shades pop up everywhere now._

_\- I see…_

 

Emil seemed to spend some time observing Nier before turning to Kainé.

\- I wouldn’t be excessively worried yet. The replicant system must’ve not been able to easily handle Nier’s case. I mean, there’s a lot more information in his mind than usually, and he was created at an older age as well. The circumstances were unique, and we can’t even tell how much he differs from a normal person of this type… a ‘replicant’, that is. From what I can tell, his body is simply trying to catch up. The problem is he lacks food, so we may need to feed him if he doesn’t wake up by tomorrow, but other than that it’s a relatively healthy rest… his muscles seem to be in some sort of preparation stage, and his brain is catching up on the substances that keep people awake and sharp, the ones that naturally are produced when we sleep. It just seems he needs a little more of them for the time being, because of the whole remaking process. But it does seem to be genuine sleep… not a coma.

_\- So… worst case scenario, he’ll be napping for a couple of days, huh?_

_\- Yes, but that’d be an extreme case. I’m… a little curious, however._

_\- Of what?_

_\- You seem different, Kainé. Like your body and even your mind changed a lot._

_\- The heck, kid. I’m in my twenties. Bodies change a little during this time still. Last time of growth and whatnot. Plus, we’ve been through hell, plus, I no longer have a damn shade living inside of me._

_\- I know. I know. That’s part of the reason, I think. That Tyrann’s gone. But it’s not the only thing. I mean… somehow, you’re different than the replicant women we’ve seen._

_\- Emil, you do remember I have a dick, right?_

 

Emil paused for a moment. Kainé was sure he’d be either sighing or blushing if not for his new body.

_\- You’re… oversimplifying things. Let me ask that… did anything change significantly in how your body works compared to the time we’ve fought the twins? Or since Tyrann left your body?_

 

Kainé stretched idly, then pondered.

_\- It’s hard to tell because I’ve been so damned moody, but there is one thing that’s been bothering me a little bit._

_\- Well, that may be part of it. What’s been the problem?_

_\- Every two months or so, I have a period of a huge swing of phases… moods… whatever. Uhhh… I’m not sure I should be telling you about this stuff yet, Emil…_

_\- I’m quite well-educated! My mansion has a big library and whatnot!_

_- Okaaayy… Let’s just say, roughly every two months, I get an itch, ugh… I mean, more than usual, I kind of want to f… I have a greater desire for intimacy. Then, a while later, I bleed. From down there. The ladyparts, for clarification. And that started only after Tyrann was gone. Never ever had that before he appeared, but…_

_\- But you don’t think it was his presence blocking it, or separating from his influence that caused it?_

_\- Yeah. I mean, I was worried at first, I tried medicines and whatnot… the thing’s a huge pain in the ass, and most of my body at times, really. But it doesn’t seem to be affecting me *most* of the time, so why the heck should I worry overmuch yet. It’s just bugging and worrying me. To be honest, I’ve done a thing or two I’m not proud of…_

 

Emil realized she desired to leave it at that for the moment. Nier sure as hell wasn’t going to explain or tell what the combined sudden attraction to wiry guys with bright hair combined with the weird spikes of desire combined with the weird persisting horniness after she burned off her anger caused her to do. Suffice to say, one instance *almost* made her hate herself, was really shameful, and something she’d never tell Emil about – much less the way he was now - even though technically nobody could be harmed by it anymore.

_\- … I believe something’s different about me. I don’t know how much of it is thanks to Tyrann being gone, but I do believe him being gone and any changes that happened to me are related to whatever caused us to forget about Nier. The fact I’m free right now… I’m pretty certain I owe it to Nier in the first place, through and through. Part of the reason why I was able to recall him somewhat all along might’ve been how strongly I was indebted to him._

_\-  But it seems whatever happened triggered a new biological change in your body. It’s something we’ll have to look in next time we can examine anything related to such matters, whether at my own mansion or at any other spot that seems to have a good library. I’m… sorry. I didn’t know much before they tried to remake me and my sister into weapons, so I don’t think I can help you immediately._

_\- No, I’m sorry for relying on you yet again. After what you’ve done and everything._

_\- Says the person who did almost the same thing…_

Emil paused for a moment, considering something.

_\- There’s no doubt about it. I wouldn’t be able to get through the research laboratory myself. Weiss was there lending magic to us, but I never used any magic other than petrification before I transformed into… this. Which I couldn’t do on my own, again. And you had Tyrann, so you wouldn’t exactly need Weiss…_

_\- Well, it’d sure as hell help to have that stupid book listen to me and to cast all these bonus sealed verses as finishing moves, but I suppose you’re right… These memories do hold up so weakly now that he’s in front of us. If it was a malicious act to wipe him from our memory, it was a very weak one, I think…_

_\- Take a nap, Kainé. I’ll sit around and try to remember things, too. Can’t let you get too far ahead of me. I’ll wake you up if he seems to stir, or if there’s trouble._

 

 

Kainé was annoyed at the perspective of going to sleep before managing to talk to Nier, but tired as well. Her eyes hurt from that light even hours later, and her body was tired from battling so many shades and robots in a row, and then carrying the sleeping Nier around. She lost her magic ability and her somewhat faster-than-possible recovery with Tyrann gone, even if her extraordinary skill and strength somehow remained, so she needed the rest even after a quick treatment from Emil’s every-developing list of magic skills.

 

Surely enough, however, trouble did follow them on the road, and eventually Emil had to shake the somewhat better-rested Kainé awake. It was easy enough. Her being a light sleeper would probably never change. But something changed a little now.

 

She could usually muster up a little bit of an excitement, a fighter’s crazy, bloodthirsty joy during a battle. It became a little subdued and more grim of a reaction since the defeat of the Shadowlord, but now, even that shade of her former enjoyment of violence seemed at least temporarily gone. It wasn’t there back in the Forest of Myth, and with a sleeping Nier a relatively easy target for the attackers, it wasn’t there now. Although, something did tell Kainé that his presence was affecting that particular emotional response in more ways than one.

Mere Shades were not much trouble to them, although Kainé felt a strong impulse to fight defensively this time, with the freshly-recovered Nier still vulnerable to attacks. Was this Nier a good fighter, at that time at least? Regardless of whether he was or not, he’d need weapons and such to pull through. She sure hoped he didn’t solely rely on Weiss’ spells.

 

Slicing through, she tried mostly to take down any shades approaching Near, while Emil seemed to have little trouble bombarding the further ones with offensive spells. It wasn’t a big group, nor were there any particularly tough Shades to deal with around, so they ended up beating them fairly easily.

Emil’s power and control over his power seemed to have grown over those past four years.

Kainé sheathed her blades and looked on the sleeping form of Nier.

_\- Another several hours…must be coming close to half a day since we got him out of that forest. Are you sure it’s not some sickness?_

_\- I’m… fairly certain it’s not a real coma, Kainé._

_\- I’m… worried. Let’s get him somewhere safe for now. And then, let’s visit your mansion for clues on what the hell’s going on. Maybe as a base of operations, too. We’ll have to see how much this Nier remembers and what are his ties to Yonah and her town before we even decide to stay there… No, actually, forget that. I doubt whatever little favor I managed to get with these townsfolk will help us stay there now._

_\- It’s because of my appearance, isn’t …_

_\- No, Emil. No matter how you look like, with this new level of control over the magic powers you have, the townsfolk would have to accept you if you helped them out enough. But me… I’ve done something pretty horrible on impulse during one of my times in that town, so if anyone who knows what happened is still around, we’d be knees deep in shit if we showed ourselves out there. Let’s try to find a good way straight to your mansion for now, okay? If we need a town, we’ll use  Seafront or go to Façade or whatever._

_\- All right, Kainé._

_\- Let’s carry him out of here before the shades return. Then you’ll rest up a bit. You still need sleep, right?_

_\- It’s a little less so after reconstructing myself, but I do need a state of rest for my magic to stay strong and my mind to function properly, yes… Not in the same way people do, though._

_\- Doesn’t matter. Sleep is sleep. You slept back then and I’m sure not letting you go restless now. But we need to get away from the area where the Shades’ already detected us… Let’s go._

 

After moving on a not very frequented way which Emil seemed convinced could lead them to his mansion while bypassing the village – why was that village so important and familiar, anyway? Yonah was gone for at least five years, so even if she lived there… Why’d both Emil and Kainé have memories of sleeping outside that village for a long time?

 

They settled down, and Kainé stood guard while Emil rested. She could swear he barely seemed to take any kind of trance or sleep at all, but seemed quite re-energized and chipper when he ‘woke up’. Was probably less than two hours. Kainé left the camp to hunt down some food, and started cooking it lightly on the camp fire when it finally happened.

Nier stirred. Twice. She couldn’t help but scoot over as his mouth opened. The sound was almost breathless, like a ‘huh’ of surprise, before he yawned loudly and stretched a little…

And then his eyes darted open.

_\- Wh…_

He couldn’t make any sound. He seemed to panic at seeing Emil, for whatever reason, but then was highly confused at something else entirely – his eyes focused on Kainé, but the surprise didn’t come off of his features. Tossing a glance from one to the other, Nier seemed to assess that there was no way Kainé wasn’t aware of a walking skeleton sitting just a bit away from her. Emil tilted his head and looked to the side dejectedly.

_\-  I suppose this isn’t the first thing someone would want to see when they wake up…_

For some reason, hearing Emil’s voice appeared to calm Nier down somewhat. Kainé also understood why he didn’t seem able to speak.

_\- Calm down, kid. That’s our friend. Here, water, water. Your throat must be parched. It’s been sixteen hours, I think._

After several minutes of sitting in silence, Nier’s throat seemed to recover enough to finally speak. And she was able to hear his voice. It felt like something trembled from deep within her heart at hearing that young, boyish voice again, and looking at Emil, she was somehow certain he felt a similar thing, too.

_\-  Yo…you’re Kainé, right? You look a little bit different. I, ugh… My head’s a mess, but if you say this person is a friend… I have a good feeling about him, anyway. His voice sounds kind if pained… Wonder how someone like that would end up friends with you, though…_

 

Kainé sighed and lightly punched Nier in the side. So, he remembered a person named Kainé as well, but didn’t remember Emil, or at least Emil in this form? She tried to sort through her memories on what could be the reason.

_\- N… Nier, do you remember a person named Emil at all?_

_\- I… don’t think anyone from the village had that name, but at Seafront, one or two people might’ve…_

_\- No, no… Not that. Emil. He has a mansion. In the south, close to Seafront, but not quite there._

_\- A… mansion? There was a place like that? I think I've seen one, but I don't know the owner..._

 

Emil glanced over to Kainé.

_\- I guess you don’t really know me, do you? That’s too bad, but it actually sounds fair for some odd reason. Well, I hope we can get along. My name is… is Emil. This appearance is probably a little unnerving, but I’m not evil or a Shade or anything like that. I’m closer to a person surviving in an artificial body… I do wish that body was a little less creepy and grotesque, but there’s nothing I can do about it now…_

Nier seemed to think hard on something, but shook his head.

_\- I’m Nier. It’s… nice to meet you, Emil. I understand life’s been hard for you, but… maybe I’ll ask you more about it later. I’m sorry, but I feel very confused right now. Kainé… We were in the forest of Myth, but things feel so fuzzy from there for some reason. I can’t remember doing much other than trying to solve that illness people had there… But you looked different last time I’ve seen you._

Kainé closed her eyes for a moment.

_\- I’m… going to try and explain things to you in a couple of moments, at least on some level, I guess, but… I need to know what we’re standing on here, Nier. If you…_

Kainé quieted down for a moment, moving over to sit next to Emil. She tossed a hand over his shoulder, hugging the skeleton form of the boy close to her body. It’d probably be painful to listen to Nier in the state things were in. It seemed Nier remembered things that happened in the Forest of Myth at least to an extent… but it was somewhat vague.

 

Nier’s eyes closed, then opened back up again.

_\- I feel like something’s been… changed, though._

_\-  What do you mean?_ – both Emil and Kainé asked, confused but hopeful about that line.

_\-  There’s a memory of me… being in that forest as a little boy. But it feels like it can’t be right, so… I don’t know. Like I said, my head’s a mess._

Kainé passed Nier a piece of roasted meat. There was something about Nier that did seem out of place. It’d have to wait.

_\- We’ll try to explain some of the things that took place as soon as we’re sure you’re okay and we have a little talk on how to best present these events to you… - Kainé explained while Nier took the piece of meat from her hands. He looked up and tried to mouth a ‘thank you’, but suddenly blushed instead, turning his head to the side._

Because of his silence and sudden change of expression, it was Kainé’s turn to tilt her head.

_\- Hm? What’s that about, kid?_

_\- I, ah, huh, ummm… You look different, Kainé. And your expression was a little different, too. S-sorry. You just looked really, what’s the word…_

 

Suddenly Emil shifted and interrupted Nier. He wasn’t sure himself why, exactly, but there was an instinct telling him he might lose something if Nier says a specific word to Kainé at this point, although he immediately felt guilty about said interruption.

_\- For the time being, Nier, please explain to us what do you remember, from the moment you met Kainé to the last thing you seem to remember._

_\-  Well… Recently, Popola told me to speak to Aerie’s mayor, but there’s been some significant trouble there and the town seemed all too quiet, everyone hiding. I came upon a small shack that was Kainé’s, and there was some misunderstanding over her flowers… the Moon Tears. We started fighting, but when she was about to go really serious, the huge shade interrupted and we forced it back together. Kainé lost consciousness in the process and we left her at her shack, but after going to try a new medication for Yonah…_

Emil and Kainé looked at each other again. Since Emil was the element who didn’t exist in Nier’s memories, he decided to pose the obvious question.

_\- Excuse me, but who is this Yonah? I know a person by that name, but I can’t be sure it’s the same one. Who’s she to you?_

_\- Ah, sorry. Kainé would at least hear about her, but you wouldn’t know I suppose. Yonah’s my little sister, and I’ve been trying to…_

_\- Find a way to heal her of the Black Scrawl. Emil knows about that illness, and was a huge help about that, even though he might not know everything about why we’ve been doing it. Back to the story…_

_\- Well, we cleared Aerie of the shades and battled the giant shade that Kainé wanted revenge on together. Me and Weiss managed to get it into her head to keep on living and that we were pretty much friends after living through that, so… Kainé, where’s Weiss? He’s been with me in the Forest of Myth, was even helping out with curing that… that illness…_

_\- Nier, the story is a little grim, so I don’t know exactly what to say to you at this point, but… It’s unlikely we’ll be seeing Weiss again. I’m sorry._

 

Nier sighed, and teared up a bit.

_\-  Y…you have to explain that! You and Weiss didn’t get along, so if it’s something serious enough to make you say you’re sorry, then…_

_\- Yes, it is that serious. But there’s been a ton of serious stuff on our heads all along, Nier. I just wanna make sure your head is okay and nothing serious changed during the time we’ve spent… trying to get you back. So please continue, and we’ll explain everything later as much as possible._

Kainé tried to be adamant about things, but it was certain now.

Nier was there. He was there when she killed that shade. The slayer of her grandmother.

The person who managed to shake her out of the emptiness of achieving revenge against such a vile target must’ve been Nier.

She looked at her left hand, and remembered the boy in front of her, looking just the way he did now, holding it, the hand that held so much of the shade Tyrann, and exclaiming she should live, that they were friends now.

That was another foothold for her memory. A second one. Something told her it was years apart from the first…  but maybe that was for the better.

_\-  You seemed willing to try it. You told me that in Façade they’ve been trying to cure the illness for a while now, because of their King getting it, so we went there and helped to save their prince and get him crowned a King, too… we even made that rule where they could now change and erase the harsher rules with a majority vote… But they didn’t have anything to really help Yonah out with that illness in the long term, since everything that they tried seemed to fail. But, we were close to completing the gathering of Sealed Verses, since we’ve found a sixth one there. It feels like… mine and Yonah’s dreams suggested  a Sealed Verse was in the Forest of Myth, and Popola got a weird message from there, so it was killing two birds with one stone if we’ve went there. But… I can’t really remember much about being there, other than trying to help out the major. Was the seventh Sealed Verse there? What happened after?_

 

Kainé shuddered. So, the boy’s memory extended until before Weiss’ full power was realized. Before they’ve found out that Weiss’ power pitched against Noir would not result in stopping the Shades or the Black Scrawl. That it wouldn’t create a cure for it, either.

From Nier’s perspective, their time together must’ve been pretty short. He must’ve witnessed a lot of her violent side… which was less of a side and more of her entire personality soon after she left Aerie, really.

_\-  I see. I see. So that’s all you remember. Six or seven verses for the book. I think the book could do three or four things in the Aerie, so…_

She nodded, slowly. This wasn’t it. Her time with this precious person was much, much longer than that.

He was there. She couldn’t tell if he was the one who defeated the Shadow Lord, but her other foothold was a memory that happened just after Emil was apparently killed. A white-haired young man. Tall and strong, but almost as broken at that sole point as she was. Her spilling herself out by trying to punch sense back into him, only to realize she should be trying to express herself in a different manner entirely.

That person and Nier were the same being, she was sure of it. This Nier was five years younger than the one she parted with, and didn’t get to live through the trials that might’ve gotten them to the point where she was just short of trying to confess how she really felt about him.

It really spoke of what kind of person she was if she tried to express something so special to someone so kind by kicking him and punching him.

And yet, there was this one short point of serenity and assurance. Yes. Just after she kicked him and punched him, Tyrann said it to her, said how much she changed on the inside, but the thing that happened, the event that tore Nier out of her life, caused her to somehow develop back into her angry, bitter self.

 

That was why she couldn’t bring up all that anger and lose herself in the fight when Nier was around, when the shades attacked while he slept… sixteen hours. He slept for sixteen hours, one per every year of his life. If he slept for five more, he’d reach that age where he managed to change the person she was… so her being unable to turn as violent as usual was because he was short those five years, and those five hours.

She wanted to punch him again, but that feeling only brought a sad smile to her features. She hugged Emil gently again with the same sad smile, realizing his own mind was trying to sort through what he learned of their story before meeting him with what Nier was speaking of now.

Nier blushed lightly again.

_\- Kainé, are you and Emil close?_

_\- We’re all friends already, Nier. Through and through. Perhaps more. But it’s complicated. A lot has happened. Good things and bad things… I’ll try to figure out with Emil here on where we should start. Give us just a moment alone, please. Oh, and… We’’ll need  to get you proper clothes in your size as well, and a weapon…_

 

Nier looked down. Indeed, he was clad only in some straps of fabric Emil and Kainé gathered up quickly, and naked underneath. His blush seemed to further.

_\- Okay, but if there’s something left to be done, let’s do it and meet Yonah soon, oka…_

_\- There’ll be just one problem with that, but let me assure you there, Nier… Yonah should be safe for now. So no rushing anything just yet. Now, give us a moment alone._

_\-  Wait, Kainé… you said you were trying to get me back. How long did it take you to do that? Is this because my memory is fuz…_

 

Kainé didn’t want to fire it off the way she did, but she couldn’t hold back those words.

_\- I spent… hell, three or four years trying to ‘get you back’, you little bastard, so of course everyone’s memory of these events is a little fuzzy… especially your own. That’s why I wanna explain it to you the best way possible, but Emil’s better with doing this stuff th…_

She paused for a moment, turning her head to not witness Nier’s shocked expression at what she said. He kept trying to pose a question, but interrupted himself, not knowing even what to start with.

_\- Four years… Why would you… what happened with…_

_\- I’m… I’m sorry for shouting, Nier. But don’t worry about it now. Like I said, some things got better, and I just need to… we’ll get there, okay? Don’t  worry about it. You helped me avenge my grandmother, and I got something out of all that mess in the end as well._

 

 

She took Emil and stepped away from the camp, with Nier a little belatedly turning the other way to give them more space. Emil sighed.

_\- Then… there’s no chance for him to remember me at all, right?_

_\- We completed Weiss’ verses or whatever when we visited your mansion. His memory cuts short literally just before that, Emil. I am sorry. I gained a lot more from that talk than you did._

_\-  Not really. We learned that Nier’s innocent. He doesn’t know anything about how we… petrified you. If you’re sure he was in the Shadowlord’s castle, then it’d likely mean he saw me try to sacrifice myself… he’d feel guilty about that. I’m sure of it. He accepted me as your friend in a flash, and said something nice already despite being scared. He’s a kind person._

 

It was Kainé’s turn for her skin to flush a little.

_\- Yes… we were probably a bunch of misfits, all impulsive, made some arguable calls, but… Nier was a kind person. That’s for sure. Which is why we must give him a story that’s plausible. One that has *some* truths in it. But one that is a blatant and simple lie. One that doesn’t weight on his soul too much or anything like that. Does he even need to know about things like Gestalts and Replicants and…_

_\- Well, you told him it took around four years, so that limits our options somewhat, but… it can’t be entirely innocent, either. Yonah will likely not remember Nier well. Even we don’t know what happened. Popola and Devola are gone, dead. And more people will end up getting the Black Scrawl eventually, because more and more Gestalts are relapsing, becoming Shades. The situation’s too complicated to be made into something that will entirely preserve Nier’s innocence. I’m… I’m sorry._  – Emil responded, as if apologizing for the world itself.

_\- Don’t be sorry for something you’ve had no hand in doing. I messed up, letting too many details slip, too._

_-I’d feel a little bad lying to Nier, though…_

_\-  In this case, a lie may be better than hearing the truth. The Gestalts are relapsing…  we don’t need to tell Nier something that would make him think he was in the wrong all this time, especially now that Yonah has recovered. But, he also needs to realize they can plan, communicate, act. At least some of them. That there are places where they congregated and places where a large number of them can still plot._

Emil nodded in understanding.

_-Basically, you’ll want him to know Shades are a people. Or even human people. Just not necessarily *the* human people. Is that correct?_

_-Yes.  Something that explains why Devola and Popola are gone, too. Perhaps we should paint them as villains. Someone who lied about what would happen if Weiss and Noir got together. Which is true, since they did lie to him about that._

_\- Just please don’t overdo it. I’d feel bad if we made Nier really hate his friends after all that complicated…_

_\- And you say that just after you mentioned it’s impossible to preserve his innocence. You’re a little too nice to these guys, Emil. Devola and Popola are dead and nobody really cares how we speak of them in a small group._

_\-  I see…_

 

There was a momentary silence during which they looked at Nier. He appeared to be getting just a little bit anxious about what was going on.

_\- So, we should say Devola and Popola lied to him, but if Weiss’ meeting with Noir couldn’t create a cure for Black Scrawl, we need a way to explain how Yonah got healed as well._

_\- The two of them were trying to usurp the cure. Use it to keep Shades sane. The missing piece of the puzzle would be in the Forest of Myth, with the tree that kept the memories of everyone and everything. The Sleeping Beauty. That’s why they sent him here, to make him unveil the last piece of the puzzle and then keep him trapped for them to milk the medication for their own purposes, with Weiss just below his full power so their own dark Grimoire could dominate and use him._

_\- And we can say the two books were the key. If only Weiss survived, we’d be able to continue producing the medicine for humans… if only Noir did, Shades would continue to be able to use the medication to preserve their minds, or Devola and Popola would be able to realize some other mischievous purpose. But since they both died, the amount of the medication could only solve so much trouble._

_\- Yes. So we saved Yonah… and cured me of Tyrann. The side effect of the medication at the stage where Yonah was in, or the effect of the illness, made her age at twice the normal rate and have her memories scrambled. It’d explain why her and Nier are practically at the same age now… And why she’s likely to be unable to remember him._

_\- So Shades still exist, can’t preserve their sanity, and we don’t know how the Black Scrawl’s existence may be affected…_

_\- We should probably mention that leaving a void behind with neither Noir nor Weiss makes it likely there’s a greater risk of contracting the Black Scrawl now._

_\- Eventually it may turn into an ‘epidemic’, that’s true. After all, with no Shadowlord…_

_\-  It doesn’t matter, Emil. We might’ve been doomed from the start. It feels bad that humanity has done so much to save itself only to be able to die out now, but… There are only a few people I’ve grown to care for enough to really want to preserve them. Nier, you, and for Nier’s sake, Yonah. If the rest of the world can only either hang in a shitty, sick balance or get ‘normalized’ back to humanity through erasing the identities of all the people we know, the people we’ve saved… I’d say maybe it’s better if humanity dies out now. It’ll take time, so if we really want to, we could spend some of that time searching for a means to help out…The Gestalts are probably seeking a way out, and there are still things like the one in Forest of Myth, constructs of the original humans… Possibly there are more Grimoires as well. It’s not like there’s absolutely no way to do *anything*. I’m just not sure we’re the ones who should be doing it._

_\- I understand. I want Nier and Yonah to be able to just take it easy at last, too._

_\- You’re included in that, Emil. It’s going to be problematic to let Nier and Yonah meet, and we should be careful about which topics we talk about with her when Nier’s around, but… Mostly, we should try to finally have a place we can call our own, I guess._

_\- Well… let’s sum it up and at least start telling Nier the current version of the story. He’s scared and confused._

_\- Devola and Popola sent Nier to the Forest of Myth to obtain the next-to-last Sealed Verse and get into touch with the knowledge about the medication. Using their magic and the forest’s special properties, they sealed Nier up and used his memory and magical power of the almost complete Weiss to allow their Shade friends to retain their sanity. This may have caused a higher risk of Black Scrawl now appearing in the land… Eventually, me and you met and managed to get Weiss back, but not Nier. The final Sealed Verse allowed Weiss to stop Yonah’s Black Scrawl from getting worse, but wasn’t at all useful in regards to actually curing the disease, and Devola and Popola made their plans known to us in an effort to recapture Weiss, since their own medication was less than effective with only Noir. Noir and Weiss finally annulled each other allowing us to obtain some of the pure medication that cured my body of Tyrann and Yonah’s Black Scrawl as well, but it was too little too late, and we decided to get Nier out of the Forest of Myth afterwards. The illness and the therapy combined made Yonah’s memory unstable, and she grew up at twice the rate she was expected to… since I said about four years passed, but she’s roughly eight or so years older than when this Nier last met her._

_\- And if Yonah or either of us ever slips something about the Shadowlord? Do we try to make him some sort of a guardian in the Forest, or ultimate assassin pursuing us after we recovered Nier?_

_\- Those both sound like decent ideas, but… The Shadowlord is too connected to the two of them. Not to mention, if we ever need to revisit that place… his castle… we may need to think up a different excuse._

_\- True enough. Let’s not speak of the Shadowlord for now, then. Are we… settled on this? I’m still not sure about lying to him like that._

_\-  We may still reveal the truth eventually. Especially if we’ll try to do something about this crappy old shriveled stinking nutsack of a world. But there’s no reason for Nier to be excessively aware of how bad things turned out to be for everyone and everything just yet._

 

 

With this, Kainé turned to Nier, calling out to him.

_-I think we’ve decided on how to best explain this to you now, Nier. I want you to know that the situation is complicated, and a lot of things happened that are sad and regretful, but you need to know the things I tell you if you’re to be able to move forward and survive. At least two things will be very painful for you to hear, but I hope, eventually, you’ll be able to move past that pain and sadness, and me and Emil will be with you every step of the way._

Nier was walking towards them when she started talking, but slowed down and stopped after she said most of that monologue.

_\- W… what’s wrong, Kainé? It’s not like you to talk this much, and trying to be so careful about what you say._

So far, Kainé didn’t say a single lie to him yet. Still, she looked away from her friends, and to the side, as if she was lying, only to speak one final truth before she cheated Nier out of the truth he was working towards when they were together.

_\- A lot has changed since we last met, Nier. That means I’ve changed quite a bit, too. Somehow, your little quest and your life gave me a reason to move on with my own life, and that’s why, even now, I’m going to do my best to help you out. With everything. I know from your perspective, not much has passed, and we only became friends recently… but I feel differently. I can’t exactly say why, but you may hear a lot more things that seem not very characteristic of me in the coming times._

Nier seemed a little stressed out by her continuing to speak in such manner, but nodded.

_\- F…for some reason, I can tell you can treasure people a little more now, I think… But, you need to tell me that story so I can understand what’s happened._

Kainé sighed, but managed to keep looking at him directly as he said it.

Their group managed to break the world and somehow beat whatever it was that caused Kainé and, evidently, everyone else to forget about Nier.

Even now, something deep inside of her was telling her Nier would somehow find out the truth eventually, and continue breaking through whatever in this world imposed their current state. She felt like all he had to do was reach out and touch her, and somehow he’d regain his memories, and her pitiful white lie of a story would be broken.

But that couldn’t really happen now, could it? And Emil even partially agreed it was best to protect him for now…

Maybe, sometimes, the truth just wasn’t good enough.

_-Very well… First of all…_

 

 

 

 

 


	4. 1d - The White Lie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A lie is told. Nobody can predict whether this world will allow Nier to preserve that newfound innocence, and his friends can't yet predict how difficult it'll be for them to help him. But they intend to at least try, sure that said lie can't harm him as he is just yet.

Kainé was finished talking. Predictably, Nier wasn’t exactly happy with what he heard, and she could detect the twinges of disbelief in him. However, she believed telling him the truth might be even more traumatizing, awkward, and assuming he even believed her and Emil, devastating to him.

_\- Devola and Popola were… lying to us? Working for someone who just wanted to use Weiss? But… that’s not possible. They were always so kind and trying to help us…_

Kainé shook her head as she tried to get a hold of herself, too. It was as if her mind was rewriting itself on the go now, with the side effect of a huge migraine. A huge chunk of it was missing, but she could recall meeting Nier now. She could recall killing the shade that murdered her grandmother together with him, could recall leading him to Façade… and nothing else until that one moment after Emil ‘died’.

As if her story was partially true in that he disappeared in the Forest of Myth, her actual physical memories did not accept the truth. Somehow, in the foggy mess that was her recollection of events from three and a half and even earlier,  Nier wasn’t present even though she was absolutely certain he should’ve been there.

But one thing was certain. Nier must’ve noticed it when she was petrified, so perhaps this Nier would understand, too.

_\- It’s not a lie, Nier. What I said is not a lie. They weren’t really on your side, because they’re not h… like you or me, Nier._

_-But… but they always helped everyone!_

 

Emil seemed to catch onto this.

_\- Always?_

It didn’t take long for Kainé to realize something just barely noticeable about the twins.

_\- So essentially… You’ve known Devola and Popola for a good chunk of your life, yes, Nier?_

_\- Yes. They’ve led the village for…_

_- Girls who looked a little older than I’ve been when we first met have been leading the village since you’ve been there. That’s correct?_

_\- Y…yes…_

_\- So, in other words, they’ve had an important role in the town ever since you’ve been a kid and they were… late teens? Were they *ever* in their late teens, Nier? You’ve said I look different… Well, did Devola and Popola look different when you first met them compared to when they’ve sent you out to the Forest of Memories?_

_\- T…they’ve worn… new clothes…_

 

Nier wasn’t stupid, and he got at where Emil and Kainé have been pointing him to. The conclusion. They left it to Nier to spell it out.

_\- It was… so easy to miss. They didn’t age, did they? Devola and Popola seemed to always look about the same way as they did the moment I’ve met them._

 

Emil nodded, slowly.

_\- In this world, it’s not impossible to create a body that never seems to age… magic, and the technology these sentient Shades seemed to possess, could create something like them. And they weren’t human in the usual sense, they just appeared like them. We can’t judge them on their emotions, but they were loyal to their creators from the start, Nier. As constructs, they did not age, and their apparent kindness might’ve been the result of them being made to blend in and help people while leading them astray… or might’ve even been genuine due to involvement of magic in their creation. But they couldn’t go against their creators’ wishes._

Something in what Emil said did not seem right. Kainé could swear Popola’s final burst of anger was somehow against what her creators’ would’ve wished for, but couldn’t remember the details… which likely meant the details involved Nier.

_\- We weren’t in touch with her for a while, but… The problematic part is that I’m sure you'd want to, or should, see Yonah. You were always exceedingly caring and thoughtful of her. But, Black Scrawl is not a natural disease, Nier. Like we said, even when we started properly curing it, it had after-effects. Yonah’s memories have been altering themselves for a while, perhaps even her personality is different, and you’ve last seen her four years ago. We’ll visit her if you insist, once we’re done with some minor stuff, but I want you to be warned that she may not be able to recognize or remember you no matter how hard you try to remind her. She may be *scared* at how much you know of her past, in fact._

_\- I… don’t want to believe this either, but…if what you said wasn’t true, you wouldn’t look older, would you, Kainé? And you wouldn’t take a path that didn’t run anywhere near my town…_

_\- There’s a second reason for that. I did something pretty bad in your town when you were gone, Nier. So they may be angry at you for bringing me there or interacting with me, I believe. I don’t know your townsfolk well, but if they can’t recognize you for some reason after those four years, it may be actually safer to just play along with that. But, it’ll be problematic to see Yonah like this if she still lives there…_

_\- Kainé, I’m going to ask you just one thing._

_\- Yes?_

_\-  You… claim Yonah is fine, but it feels you’re not very honest about it even as you explain the downsides to her being ‘healed’. Are you… lying to me? Is Yonah still sick or… or dead?_

Indeed, Kainé was dancing around the topic. She wasn’t sure how to reunite Nier and Yonah if Nier insisted, nor how to explain the situation if herself and Emil as well as Yonah were not the only one with little to no recollection of Nier.

 

It was Emil’s turn to make the save.

_\- Nier, Kainé’s just worried._

_\- Worried?_

_\- Yes. That’s because she couldn’t see your sister in a while. Because she was busy trying to get you back. And even if we’ve healed her, it’s not like we managed to remove Black Scrawl from the world at large. But the medicine is no longer there… So there’s a risk the townsfolk will get it, too. I think what scares Kainé the most is the thought Yonah could get it *again*, somehow, since we don’t know how that illness works. I think she might be immune to it now, but you have to forgive Kainé for being scared of you going back and finding out something even more stressful and horrible than your sister just not remembering you. It’s not that you feel like Kainé’s lying to you, it’s more like she really hopes, almost desperately, that the situation didn’t get worse when you left._

_\- I… I see. So… there’s that possibility, too. Kainé, Emil, could we… could we still try to look for a way to remove Black Scrawl entirely? A medicine, a way to make people immune to it, or something like that? Even if Yonah’s safe…_

_\-  We still know very little, Nier, but… We wanted to research some things after finding you and getting you back. Amongst those things was helping Yonah recover her memory._

_\- Yes! We may as well add trying to find a remedy for Black Scrawl to the list of things we’ll try to find out about._

 

[“Another lie… or half-truth, anyway. It’s not Yonah’s memories we’re trying to get back, Nier, but ours. Sorry.”]

_\- Emil has a mansion with a library. We’ll begin our search there. Depending on what we find, we may try out your hometown’s library and one, two, maybe three other spots for information. If we learn anything useful, we may need to go on yet another trip, though._

 

Nier nodded again, with Kainé placing a hand on both of her companion’s heads in an affectionate gesture – surprising Nier far more than Emil.

_\- Let’s work hard when we have to and take it easy when we can, okay? Plenty has already been done. As long as we’re all safe, that’s what matters._

 

Nier shuddered for a couple of moments. He didn’t like it when people touched his head or hair – for good reason. He didn’t remember Kainé being affectionate much with anyone – but, gods know why, it didn’t feel so much out of the realm of possibility for her to be showing kindness now. It was like he had a stronger bond with her and even Emil than he could realize. Like something was missing. Something important.

For some reason, feeling Kainé’s hand in his hair wasn’t nearly as bad as with most people, despite the fact he still remembered crossing swords with her once, and being called a bastard and even other names a couple of times.

It was hard to pinpoint, but with the sole exception of Yonah, it was the first time in years when he could read enough into another person to know that they didn’t just appear to care, but actually *did* care. Popola and Devola fooled him, but they also fooled everyone else. So he didn’t resist or withdraw, letting Kainé have her patronizing moment as the skeletal Emil seemed content to do.

He wasn’t home yet, but even if everything they said really came to pass, he was amongst friends.

 

 

 

Even with the roundabout way of finding it, the trip to Emil’s mansion wasn’t an exceedingly long or difficult one. In something of a contrast to the past, Shades were no longer quite as attracted to the mansion as in the past, and many of the ones who attacked it before have been killed – it could be hypothesized that many of these Shades were originally living in the place’s underground laboratory in the first place, or that they became instinctively aware of Emil’s ascension to the status of a magical weapon and thus no longer keen to try and hang around the place. Still, they had to be careful of any that actually did have the will to stick around.

Emil asked to go in alone first to inform Sebastian of the ‘guests’, but Kainé knew better. Emil likely wanted to give the two of them a moment to talk as well as set something else up with Sebastian, maybe check if his butler possessed any memory of Nier that would’ve blown their own cover.

_\- S…so, Kainé. If the Shades are twisted remnants of humans, but some remained sentient and whatnot, why’d they still be against us? And… won’t these sentient ones still try to hunt us?_

Kainé shook her head.

_\- I wouldn’t say the ‘sentient’ Shades or these twins from your village were against us specifically. They just greedily followed their own motives without caring for regular people when it didn’t suit them._

_\- Just trying to survive?_

_\- A little deeper than that. Just trying to stay on top. It’s probably a fear old alphas of pack predators or human leaders of societies feel when someone can surpass them. These Shades wanted to be better than humans, smarter. With better technology, stronger magic, and able to still judge others by their own morality. In the end, they might’ve not been that much better than the feral Shades… But I guess many humans are like that in the end._

_\- It’s a little sad, but I don’t know if I can feel sorry for them._

_\- You don’t need to. You already know it, right?_

_\- I should probably judge them as individuals and not a group, huh… Did you ever feel sorry for any of them, Kainé?_

_\- I spent too much time trying my best to hate them. I feel like, in the end, I might’ve felt sorry for Tyrann if I knew what was driving him better._

_\- Tyrann?_

_\- Oh, I suppose I never mentioned him properly. Tyrann was the shade who helped me survive when my grandmother died and attached himself to me… possessed me, if you will. That’s what he preferred to call himself. He was an existence both helpful and hurtful to me… So I’m trying not to judge him now. But thanks to you, that part of my life is now closed._

_\- Thanks to… me?_

_\-  Yes. Through Weiss and the Forest of Myth, we purged me of Tyrann in a similar way to how we healed Yonah. I got the better end of the deal compared to her, though. My memory’s… only a bit fuzzy, and I didn’t age excessively. On the outside, at least._

_\- I wouldn’t say that you owed this to me in any way._

_\- Your stubbornness in dragging me along with you and in trying to find out means to heal your sister allowed me much growth and recovery. More than you think. Including no longer being just half a person. If I say I feel like I have a debt to you, I want you to believe me._

_\- Okay, Kainé. Emil is out with some person now… let’s see what we can find out, okay?_

 

Sebastian led Nier in as Emil gave Kainé a short explanation. They were both sure Nier must’ve had been to Emil’s mansion before, but Emil’s butler confirmed their suspicions – other people who should’ve met him also couldn’t remember who Nier was, so the phenomenon didn’t extend to just them and Yonah.

 

But, something did make Kainé a little bit more relaxed and happy when Sebastian brought some stuff into the room they stayed at.

Clothes, and a sword. A weapon. Emil proceeded to explain.

_\- When I returned to the mansion, this weapon was for some reason near the library. I couldn’t even remember how it got there, although it felt just a little bit familiar. We kept it just in case, though neither me nor Sebastian are in any shape to use a sword… I even managed to upgrade it a bit. It seems to be made to use one-handed, but it’s quite heavy._

Kainé inspected the blade. It appeared only vaguely familiar, consisting of a yellow handle with a little gem, and having a couple points in which the sword was broadened, including a sudden wider part at the very end of it after where the traditional, less ornate blades would simply end up having the tip, only to once again finish the slimming of the edge into the end of the blade. Taking it in her hand, Kainé decided that it was probable for a blade to be even heavier, but it decidedly wasn’t the lightest one-handed sword ever made. She passed it onto Nier, now sure he did use one-handed swords in the past thanks to her resurfacing memories from their travels before the Forest of Myth visit.

_\- If it’s okay with Emil, this will belong to you now. We’ll spar after we get you dressed and have some food, if it’s okay with you. We need to check if you hadn’t gotten rusty._

_\- Well , if you’ve gotten any stronger during that time, I’m definitely not winning that spar…_

_\- All that matters is if you’re still strong enough to handle yourself. A young swordsman like you is sure to develop amazingly if he continues trying. As long as you can handle yourself overall, we’ll be fine in the end._

_\- I understand. Now, I’m going to change my clothes in the other room…_

 

Sebastian interrupted the exchange.

_\- I apologize if these clothes don’t entirely fit you, but they were made for someone a little smaller than yourself. We’ll try to find more that may be a better match, but this was on a short notice._

Emil also cut in.

_\- It’ll be best if we gather more fabric if you two are going to spar and if we’re going to be doing any fighting in the future in the first place… Even an armor might eventually be necessary… Maybe we’ll manage to keep pushing Kainé on the path of modesty, too…_

_\- Emil, if you try to make any jokes about my way of dressing up, old or new, at this point, I’m going to have you sew me a new set of lingerie all by yourself, and then I’m going to wear it._

_\- Waaaah, Emil, don’t bring that up in front of Kainé! I was hoping she actually switched to these marginally more humble outfits without not… K-Kainé, why’re you looking at me like this…_

_\- Nier, possible punishments may also extend to you, so shut your cute lil’ trap and get dressed._

_\- O-oookaaay!_

 

 

Less than half an hour later, Kainé and Nier were outside the mansion. It was clear the clothes Sebastian brought were a less formal and slightly more baggy version of Emil’s own clothes, which was just a tad problematic in and of itself – because Nier was a good dozen centimeters, or almost five inches, taller than Emil’s original body, even if they managed to get the clothes to fit him in width, the length itself was a little bit of a problem, with the bottom of Nier’s calves sticking out. Same applied to his hands, which showed a bit of his forearm. Ordinarily, Nier’s clothes often showed his thighs, but in this case they were covered; instead a bit of his midriff was visible, while the less was tightly wrapped with fabric, proving the difference between the two boys’ physiques. Nier had a light build, but it was muscular enough to show now.

Kainé avoided staring, instead trying to focus on gauging Nier’s level of strength and skill as she drew her blades. With only one serious weapon available to him, Nier had to use the ‘slightly upgraded’ weapon Emil supplied him with. Kainé’s weapons were probably quite a bit higher in quality by now, but this wasn’t a serious fight, so it did not matter.

_\- Emil can do some magical healing, but nothing really extraordinary as of yet. So, don’t worry about hurting me or getting hurt, but let us avoid going for vitals. Focus on forcing your sword through my guard by skill or strength when possible, and dodging or avoiding my counters, not dealing damage. That okay?_

_- Yeah, sure. I must try to catch up again._

Nier was the first to move. With his body still being relatively small, the heavy-ish blade seemed to slow him down, but within the couple first strikes his talent with one-handed weapons shone through – he was able to adjust to the weapon’s weight and strike with it more effectively, forcing Kainé to occasionally parry his attack rather than just dodge. The hermaphrodite fighter deemed his weapon’s quality a factor working against him, as it didn’t exactly lend its strength to Nier just yet, with its own level of attack power not posing that great of a threat.

Kainé was never weak, even as a child, the only real advantage of having a ‘freak’ body over a regular girl’s one. When she almost died and Tyrann saved her, being part-shade really seemed to make combat skills become something natural, with her easily growing to be a dangerous fighter. Because of Tyrann or because of constant fighting, her body’s muscles developed an unnatural strength in many ways, and further lending itself to that unnaturalness was joining the advantages of a male and female physique in a fight. Light and strong, with flexible joints and a set of hips and legs that allowed for movements surprising people accustomed to male fighters, while at the same time having more or less every bit as much of sheer striking power as a man in her situation would have.

And then her adventure put her through many difficult battles, helping her grow further until it separated her from Tyrann. She may no longer be able to recover from grisly damage on her own, but for whatever reason – perhaps connected to the mysterious end of the encounter with the Shadowlord – her body didn’t weaken. And the current world gave her just enough ‘exercise’ to keep her in shape.

 

Nier found that out the hard way when Kainé’s sudden, powerful kick – other than revealing seductive but excessively bulged-out panties as usual – after blocking his blade and forcing him to dodge with her other sword send him flying back. She overdid it, most likely.

The boy’s acrobatics were a little less flashy than hers – a lot less flashy when it came to showing off semi-naked bodyparts – but he had the speed and agility. Switching the momentum and regaining his balance, he managed to correctly move just in case of a follow-up attack from Kainé – which didn’t happen simply because she was too worried about kicking Nier too hard back then. She relaxed at how easily he recuperated, and charged him, swinging her blade to force him into defence, but purposefully leaving some small holes in her bladework, checking if his instincts or observation allowed him to take advantage of them.

 

Surely enough, making mistakes on purpose resulted in her being struck at again and forced into defense for a change, but she countered one of Nier’s initial strikes quickly. Nier dodged the attack successfully but tried to keep up his offense, slashing horizontally a little underneath Kainé’s chest level.

She was enchanted with the familiarity of this technique. Her memories flashed again to regular fights against shades that were roughly human-sized, with Nier at her side, dodging and striking in a similar manner just like he did now.

She was quicker than him and familiar with the technique, but sentimental enough to almost want to get struck with it. Her wish was granted, with the first wound and successful strike Nier has landed in the battle as of yet.

They exchanged a quick look. Somehow, they both understood one another’s emotions enough to realize it wasn’t the time to say “sorry”. Nier was forced to block an immediate counter from Kainé, and he only barely had enough strength to successfully parry a quick and unprepared strike.

Kainé’s other blade was equally merciless, coming down right on the boy’s shoulder, only for his footwork to save him, miraculously, in the last moment as the blade descended.

Kainé held back her fighting instinct, not wanting to hurt the boy excessively yet, since it was a test. She slowed herself down just enough so that Nier’s attempt at taking advantage of his movement and her own strike would both connect. Blood of both was spilled over the ground, the observing Emil gasping worriedly.

Kainé tried to use her long leg to trip Nier, but instead he rushed at her again, jumping and trying a powerful hack from above. It was a more focused version of another move Nier used frequently enough, and this time, Kainé blocked it on purpose to test how much force was behind it.

It wasn’t that he was weak, objectively. From most perspectives, the combination of struggles against virtually unnatural creatures forged with demonic elements, and the sheer power and exquisiteness of Kainé and Nier’s constantly upgraded weapons during their long travel mixed in with the incredible killing instinct they developed against the Shades pretty much made them superhuman when it came to striking things down. Quite a high level of superhuman. And Nier’s resurrection simply relegated him to a lower level than that of this older, constantly fighting and well-prepared Kainé.

 

It was the reverse of a somehow familiar feeling. She was superior to him in every way right now. She knew she could beat him up badly if she was serious, despite the sixteen year old swordsman having every right to be proud of what he already managed to develop into. But that brought back another memory, or a shade of one. Remembering the sensation, the emotions she felt when Emil brought her back from being petrified. The tall, strong, powerful Nier, likely physically older than she was at the same point. So well-grown, so strong, not only catching up, but at that point surpassing her in pretty much every way. Making her heart beat fast and her eyes just barely hide the longing both this change, and the fact she could be *protected* by this man, made her feel.

 

The memory made her overly conscious of the fact that she was sparring against that very same important and special person. That his legs were showing, that his stomach was, taut and well-trained.

That he’ll grow up to be that amazing person again, as sweet and strong as he already was before they had to part ways.

Her heart was beating faster again. Racing, in fact. Her features flushed a little, the excitement of her memory combining with how she sometimes felt during or after combat.

The ‘freakshow’ between her legs sending the signal. Both of her sides aching for what was in front of her.

[“So it’s already gotten to the point where I can hunger for him even when he’s a brat… That bastard… I can’t even recall most of our time together, Nier. What the fuck is this feeling… Shit. Shiiiit.”]

She just wanted to finish now. Her hips swayed left and right, a mix of a woman’s seductiveness with the predatory preparation to strike. Her legs got serious, striking Nier several times again before using their entire force to seriously blow him away. She tossed one of her swords, just barely missing on purpose, but forcing the recuperating Nier’s instinct to move to the other side.

There were no humanlike bounds on Kainé’s leaps anymore. It was more soaring than jumping when she really wanted to do it. And Nier was used to her doing such acrobatics, perhaps, but not used enough, and not on such a scale.

 

Even with a single blade, Kainé could easily outpace the young Nier now. Strike after strike, dodging and parrying his frantic, but only occasional counters, she continued to push him into defense until she marked another hit with her leg. A forced block was simply being pushed at, until she altered her entire bodyweight to just swing herself to his side and go on all fours…

Like she was a cat.

Or like when she was a Shade.

The next two strikes finished the battle, batting Nier’s weapon out of his hands, and just barely cutting him once more, with Kainé stopping on that as her proof of victory.

It was easy enough. She merely needed to bare her fangs a little to completely overwhelm this pup, but she couldn’t complain or mark him negatively. As long as they wouldn’t come up against such monstrosities as the one attacking the town, which they barely managed to seal in the library at the cost of turning her to stone, or the boar-like amalgam from Shadowlord’s ‘castle’,  Nier would do fine if they got him a good enough weapon.

He did seem almost scared at her couple of finishing moves, and she desperately needed bodily contact from him, too. She needed to hide her boner as well, with it not being that far off from Emil’s or Nier’s current heights. Kainé just dropped her sword and placed both hands on Nier’s shoulders, instinctively but not purposely showing off her cleavage to him.

_\- You did well. We need to improve that sword further or get a better one to make sure your attacks hurt shades and other dangerous things properly. You need to get used to whatever you end up fighting with, too._

_\- But... If you fought like this from the start, I’d…_

_\- It’s almost a four years difference of struggling, Nier. I can promise you know you’ll grow into a magnificent warrior, and a strong man, so don’t get worried over some freak managing to kick you around in a sparring match. This freak will always be at your side as your sword from now on, so rather, feel confident about that, and about my confidence in you doing well._

She gently pulled him close, laying a hand on one of the spots where she got a wounding strike on him.

_\- Good. I didn’t overdo it either. You strike hard for a little kid, and your body’s fast and durable. You’re stronger than most adult men, as a matter of fact, and right now it’s still possibly the least of your assets. You’ll be perfectly capable of terrifyingly strong strikes in the future, I feel._

Nier’s skin, cut and bleeding, made her worried, and enchanted at the same time. So she decided to focus on the worry rather than give her erection reasons to continue. Pulling him along, she stepped over to Emil’s side, carefully using slight crouches and positioning Nier in a way that would hide her mildly visible sign of excitement different than that of a ‘pure’ fight.

_\- Let’s have Emil patch us up, and then we’ll try starting the search for information in his library, huh?_

_\- I’d say we could also later scout the mansion for any more weapons. I mean, the underground’s a … Quite an adventure, so there’s bound to be some stuff there that we could find._

_\- As odd as it’ll sound in my mouth, I may wanna start with the books._ – Kainé responded. Emil gave the most outraged expression he was able to make, with Nier coping it perfectly – both of their jaws slack and wide open in shock.

_\- Yeah, yeah, little bastards. There’s some things I just want to find out. About some stuff.  And there are no damned flying books here to spell out the important recorded stuff for us, so we need to get it the classical way._

 

In the library, it became clear there’d only be so much the group would be able to decipher as a group.

Emil did have a lot of books, but not all of these books were written in the same alphabet. It was as if the library housed things gathered from many different centuries. Since neither Kainé nor Nier had excessively much in way of education, most of the reading and deciphering would fall to Emil, but at least the split of duties was more clear than not.

 

The books had a wide variety of topics, and in some cases Emil just left it to Kainé to check if a book had any specific chapters for him to read himself, while in others her or Nier were able to read the given book properly. However, there was a split of duties only two people out of the three was aware of. While Nier was receiving books related to magic – those that he could read in the first place, anyway – to search for things that affected the mind and memory, positively and negatively, and books on illnesses and whatnot, Kainé and Emil had another couple of topics to split between themselves.

 

Books primarily related to more ancient history and to biology, particularly human biology and anatomy. Kainé didn’t understand many things about these, but she could sure as hell read when someone was talking about genitals or find out if names like “replicant” or “gestalt” appeared in a book – which was unlikely, but Emil at least claimed had a chance of happening. After reading through what she could and marking what she could – and setting the marked books aside for Emil to check out afterwards – Kainé checked Nier’s progress on relations between magic and mind, but there’s not that much to be found. While Emil seemed pretty content with continuing to stay in the library, Kainé and Nier wanted to stretch, and Emil called for Sebastian to let them into the underground part of the mansion.

The skeletal boy scooted over to Kainé, explaining.

_\- That’s where… we found the means to fix the effects my first power had on you. Where I changed. The second and third level are dangerous and have been re-sealed after we went there, so don’t go down there without me just in case. Explore the uppermost level for now. There may be some documents we didn’t preserve or copy into Weiss down there, so feel free to take a look at them if you want to. I’ll keep checking the books for that symptom of yours and other things._

_\- Yeah. Thank you Emil. Sorry for leaving you alone with everything again, and make sure to stay awake and aware of everything. I know you’re plenty tough now, but from what I recall this place isn’t the safest if the shades get really stubborn._

_\- Right back at you. And, oh…_

Emil turned a little, looking over at how far Nier’s been to check if he was able to hear them. It was likely he’d get some sounds at least, so Emil decided to speak cryptically for now.

_- I had to focus a lot to even get to it, but… I pierced through this veil on that time when you were under my eye’s power. When I was alone and terrified from getting these powers… I was comforted by a white-haired person._

_Emil looked up at her. In her mind’s eye, Kainé could imagine the gentle boy she first met him as giving her one of those shy smiles._

_\- I’m not catching up to you anytime soon… but I think I may have my own point in memory where I’ve beaten whatever’s been keeping him away from us. Just maybe._

_\- You’re amazing, Emil. If I hadn’t felt something was wrong every time I looked at that flower, and if I didn’t get a random flash about what I was missing more or less once a year after a more clear one in that ‘castle’… I’d probably give up in anger. You didn’t have any of my luck, we still don’t understand what broke those connections and created such weak ones… but you managed to recover a memory all on your own._

_\- There’s still one more person who found him important… I wonder what it’s like f…_

Placing a hand on Emil’s head again, Kainé silenced the boy as it seemed Nier got closer to see what they were up to. Smiling gently down at Emil again, she strode forward and past him, moving towards the underground passages.

 

Emil himself turned the other way, back to the library, quietly pondering on the nature of everyone’s bonds inside the group, and Nier’s bond with Yonah.

Deep down, he was beginning to understand that Kainé was careful and considerate around him, that they really became like surrogate siblings in many ways. It was something he knew already.

But Nier didn’t need a surrogate sibling, he had Yonah. And Emil was doubting Kainé was the type to hoard up on bonds of a single type, especially with how her life turned out…

He decided to try and see how Kainé’s expression differed when she tried to encourage or be kind to people other than her. It seemed she was a little tougher on Nier for some reason, but why exactly…

Emil still couldn’t remember what might’ve been the reason for that, other than them obviously fighting side by side in the past.

 

 

 

Kainé and Nier themselves were rather careful, but there seemed to be nothing to fight with on the first level of the underground laboratory.

_\- This place looks… really strange. Have you been here before, Kainé?_

 

Kainé smiled a little. What sort of odd world was this? The person who likely came down here to save her from being trapped in stone forever was asking her if she visited this place. Normally, it’d be very confusing. Normally, a person would be a little taken aback by this situation, because it’d reinforce the feeling that someone just looked and had the identical basis as someone important to them, but wasn’t that person.

But Kainé lost all memories of Nier once, and was aware of the inescapable fact of the world they lived in.

They weren’t human, but they had sentience and conscience. And this Nier was, at the very least, a big chunk of the one taken away from her in every single way… down to also being a Replicant.

She fought to get this Nier back, and something inside of her couldn’t help but react to everything he did with the sensation that she was regaining that special something she lost three and a half year ago.

This wasn’t someone she just met. She could read why Nier asked this question, through some strange bond this world sought to take away from her, through a connection she couldn’t understand… perhaps the same one that gave her access to more of what was lost than Emil, or even Yonah.

_\- Nier, if there’s something you want to ask of me, you can go ahead and say it. You don’t need smalltalk or little steps._

_\- I was… worried you’d get angry._

_\- Well, you are several years too young to tease me about anything or make odd suggestions, aren’t you? Though I doubt you’d go down to Weiss’ level…_

_\- I just… noticed you care a lot for this Emil person. Did you two grow really close when… when I wasn’t there? You’re really kind to him. There’s this warmth in your eyes that makes you seem…_

_\- Not myself?_

_\- … A little bit. But mostly makes you seem kind. And pretty._

Her cheeks flushed a little bit.

_\- My feelings for Emil are probably more pure and sibling-like than yours for Yonah, you crazy, heroic little siscon._

_\- W…wawhaaaa?_

_\- I’ve told you that you were too young to speak of such things. Are you feeling left out, Nier? I can assure you that you and Emil can grow to be really close friends. He’s a wounded but wonderful person. If you could only… Before he transformed into his current form, which is a magical weapon of old, he was just a boy like you, but with a characteristic of his body that isolated him from people. Like me.  So, I think it was easy for him and me to bond over it. We both owe him a lot, more than you think, even if you weren’t there to see it. So open up to him, be friends with him. I know you can ignore his appearance, and you’re beginning to understand what he is like, don’t you? I think the clothes you’re wearing were originally his, too. You’re a big brother, so maybe you understand what it’s like to look upon someone close to us, cute and only seemingly in need of protection, but somehow so strong at the same time._

_\- It looks like you two have a lot in common, and been through a lot._

_\- We’ve all been through a lot, Nier. You don’t have to worry about being left out at all. The reason you’re here is because we’ve wanted you here, badly. Even the stupid book would say the same if he was here._

_\- I was just… shocked. I understood why you hurt in Aerie and from some time we’ve traveled together, and I thought you’d try to just burn that out through violence and always speaking your mind harshly, so it feels a little odd to be seeing you show that completely different side._

_\- You didn’t misjudge me, Nier. It’s just like I said, though. A lot has changed… And things are probably a lot more complicated than I can even convey to you. Are you jealous, by any chance?_

Nier shook his head for a moment, then stopped.

_\- I don’t… think so. I just feel happy and sad at once, for some reason. I mean, it’s wonderful that you can feel openly about your friendship and closeness with someone. It just makes me a little sad I wasn’t there to see you open up like that, I wasn’t there to earn these sorts of expressions too, or at least see Emil get them for the first time._

It was Kainé’s turn to shake her head at Nier’s words. It was so obvious. She wanted to tell him that he was there. She wanted to tell him she’s been in the exact same situation his current body was in now – losing time and seeing people close to her change. She even wanted to tell him of that powerful feeling that carried itself through what seemed like oblivion, and was now carrying itself inbetween different incarnations of the same person…

There was such a thing in their story, too, but could Kainé remember just how deeply Nier’s and Yonah’s replicants mirrored their gestalts? Not right now, she couldn’t.

That was the issue. No matter how much she was hammered, she always managed to get back into that cold, aloof stupor, and desire to express herself in the most simple and direct method possible… usually very physical, and more often than not painful. She could never spell out exactly what she wanted to say in their final moments together, and now, she had a story to protect, too. A white lie told to Nier, with probably a couple more to come.

So she said the one thing she could say. The one thing that didn’t bridge the gap between what the Nier thought of her when they avenged her grandmother and what she thought of him when she kicked him after they lost Emil too much for his young mind to understand.

_\- It’s okay, Nier. I promise to do my best to stay around together with you until you can fairly say the expression I give you is one that makes you happy and accepted as well. Until I give you the kind of expression you want to see._

Nier was visibly confused and became a little meek from her response. There was a corridor a little more hidden than others, so they decided to go through it. Finally, Nier managed to speak up.

_\- Kainé… There’s something amiss with my mind. I feel like I already know you and even Emil better than I should, for some reason, even though we didn’t talk much or do much since that meeting. I feel like… the change I’m seeing is less surprising and more natural than what I say about it. Like, there’s something inside of you now that spells it out for me even now._

_\- Maybe it’s just that the Tyrann’s gone. Maybe you have some crazy instinct or that empathy thing better developed than we thought, and you’re not picking him up anymore… just me, and I’m not as bad as either of us thought, in the end._

_\- I’m not sure if that’s it, Kainé… but some things are different about you and yet others feel the same. I wanted to get to know the old Kainé, but somehow the current you seems to be amazing even with how little I know, and yet still gives me the same feeling the old you did, only as if… As if somehow I wasn’t away for so long. It’s really weird. It’s like my mind and emotions are telling me completely different things._

_\- I know exactly how that feels, but you’re saying some pretty embarrassing things right now, Nier._

_\- I thought I just wanted to see Yonah healthy and happy, to make sure it’s safe. I still very much want to do that, Kainé, but somehow… Your words really make me want to thank you for saying them, even though you seem so mysterious and cool when you say them._

_\- And theeere… we… Go._

Grabbing something large and heavy, Kainé slammed it into the ground, making sure to miss Nier.

_\- It’s a two-handed axe-like thing. Too big for you to swing around, but it’s not that heavy for its size. The attack power seems strong, and we can still enhance it if we leave it to Emil or go to the Junkyard, I guess._

She slammed the tip of the weapon against the ground and leaned over it as she passed the handle to Nier’s hands. It was a long weapon, almost like a polearm, but with a pike at one side and two axe-head blades on the other, one close to the end of it, the other  just below the first.

Nier wasn’t sure what to do about Kainé’s sudden reaction and her newfound proximity, even as his hands instinctively tried to grab that weapon.

_\- This thing’s still too large and heavy for you to swing effectively. You’ll be able to do it easily in time, but right now, it’s just not right for your body type, even though you’re strong enough to swing it. So, if someone saw you swing that weapon, they’d either think you’re a brat for showing off, or that you’re pretty fucking amazing doing something someone your age wasn’t meant to do, right?_

_\- This… doesn’t sound like it’s really only about the weapon…_

_\- Yup. The same thing is about words, Nier. I already know you’re pretty special, especially for your age, so if you say these kinds of words, I’d be inclined to believe that you have conviction and are mature about saying them over thinking you’re a brat sticking your nose somewhere else. And it was probably a little embarrassing for both of us, but I did just promise you I’d let you push me to the point where I’d make the expressions you wanted to see, that I’d be next to you until you could say I kept that little promise._

It was his turn to blush and turn to the side. Kainé smiled, despite her own flushed cheeks, but also grew a little stubborn over what he was leading her to say.

_\- It’s hard to explain, but I just want you to rely on me for a short time at least. For now, I can finally just be your sword, and just that, so let me do it before you say things that make us think I can and should be something else, Nier. I still have that impulsive, stubborn, rash side to me. That Kainé didn’t disappear, because there wasn’t enough people around to make her disappear entirely. So, we both need to adjust before we’re ready to talk about such things without that ugly freak of a Kainé rearing her head._

 

Nier’s footing was unsure, and he stumbled backwards a little, yanking the weapon out of Kainé’s own hands and plopping down on the floor. Kainé was glad the rapid beat of her heart didn’t extend to pumping blood frantically through her lower body, which was now easier for Kainé to observe than her somewhat flushed face.

_\- Grow strong quickly so I don’t have to tease you and can fulfill my promise quickly, too. Or just take it easy and let me be your sword. For now, either’s fine with me, so you don’t have to worry over picking one or the other overmuch. But, with the kinds of messes we were in, and with what I’ve been through over my life and that time since we’ve met, don’t think I’d spend over three years trying to get just anyone back, brat. When I say I owe you, it pisses me off,  even though I know deep inside it’s not untrue. But the Kainé you know would just slash the issue up quickly and try to not ponder over it too much, so there’s this risk I’ll see a permanent but wrong solution to that annoying feeling of being indebted like this._

_\- Isn’t it more like… I’m indebted to you for setting me free?_

_\- No, dumbass, because you’ve set me free at least twice now. So get it in your thick skull. Don’t just rely on what you feel for Yonah anymore, because that’s at once solved and a huge nest of fucking ants. It’s a thing I *know* you can do, somehow, but it pisses me off thinking how long it’s going to take you now that’s you’re in a world that’s changed around you and is confusing you. Excuse me for being fucking impatient, Nier._

_She grabbed his hand with a more neutral expression and helped him up. He felt like the old Kainé was back, only with_ a lot more push to her, and an odd sense of kinship greater than he’s felt before, probably comparable to how she felt about Emil. The odd thing was, he couldn’t quite pinpoint it. Couldn’t guess from where that kinship stemmed.

Later, it turned out there was nothing more of note on that level of the laboratory, so soon, they were walking up from the basement to meet with Emil again.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully, I'll manage to make Nier stop coming off as a confused wuss in the up-and-coming chapters.  
> I'm a little worried that Kainé's relative upfront attitude and open-ness is a little OOC for her as well, but that's what happens when you decide to make the story "not too long". I hope you can enjoy both her changed and unchanged sides, still. Feel free to leave feedback, it'll be appreciated.


	5. 2a - Menarche

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kainé, the awakened Nier, and Emil spend more time at the latter's mansion. Trying to learn at least something about several topics at once, Emil manages to change an apparently minor piece of information into what seems to be a major revelation.

The group sat back down in the library, with Emil having already taken a good look at the book section they’ve committed themselves to checking. He apparently cathegorized them, maybe in terms of usefulness or how interesting they’d be, though Kainé was well-aware the amount of information this library contained would be problematic to search through if they wanted a serious answer.

- _It’s impossible to really get a look at all these things in that short of a time after all, huh? – Kainé asked as she entered the room._

-  _Y…yeah. This little pile is what I found interesting for me but not useful for us, more or less… This even smaller pile contains information that may or may not be of some use to us… And the two big piles are what’s either not apparently useful or interesting and books I need to check to understand more._

-  _I see… well, you can sit and relax, or check these books that seemed interesting. We have to sit down and decide on some things that we’ll be doing next, assuming there’s no big hints in the books._

-  _Even if we find anything, finding some plan to fall back on may be useful, although I don’t exactly mind us just staying here._

-  _We will stay here for as long as it takes to find something interesting, but I want to stock up on supplies and good weapons._

Nier seemed a little worried.

-  _It… has its flaws, but this weapon is actually one of the better ones I’ve used overall I think. Have shades grown so dangerous that we still need to go even above that?_

-  _Yes and no. There’s always the risk of something showing up that’s surprisingly dangerous… and now, neither you nor I can really use magic anymore. So to not depend on Emil’s magic for finishing the big ones too much, we need to arm ourselves as well as possible. This goes doubly so for you. That is, we need to get you the best weapon we can and make sure it is in top shape. It’s not like I don’t believe in your skills… I’m probably thinking of overdoing things a bit, just so we can be completely certain everyone’s safe._

-  _Then we’ll visit some places that could sell good weapons, and then visit Junk Heap to see if it’s still possible to upgrade things there?_

Kainé nodded.

-  _That’s what I was thinking. Plus, Junk Heap has this whole old technologies and things deal about itself, so there may be some stuff we could find out there, too._

\- _You guys have been to Junk Heap? And know Jakob and Gideon?_

Kainé and Emil cast another glance at each other. True enough… they were in Junk Heap as a group, but that was after Kainé was depetrified. Was Nier the one that lead them there? He might’ve been upgrading his weapons there before… It was a mild blunder, but it did show they grew a little careless.

\-   _Only Gideon. Jakob’s… dead. Gideon didn’t take it well, either, so there’s a chance we won’t be able to upgrade weapons at their place. Might need to find another spot to do so, since Emil only knows so much about how the process works._

-  _So, where will we start?_

-  _Seafront, maybe Façade. I don’t know if we’ll be visiting the central village…_

\- _Kainé! -_ Nier almost whined out loud in protest.

-  _Remember what I told you, Nier. Although, if it’s only to check what kind of weapons they have for sale, I guess it should be possible. It’s inevitable that we’ll eventually try to let you meet Yonah, though. You must be missing her from all the traveling… just remember she’ll look a lot different than the person you’ve seen the last time.  Her body aged eight years over a period of four… she may look more like your twin than the little sister you remember._

-  _Yes, but… I still want to meet her._

-  _Well, then. Since we’ll still get a friendly welcoming in Façade most likely, we can save it for a little harsher of a time. For now, we’ll visit Seafront and maybe try to get a weapon-deal at Nier’s village, then we’ll go to Junk Heap. If Gideon’s not there or doesn’t want to upgrade weapons anymore, we’ll need to find a new person to do it. Once we’re done preparing, we can settle here for researching more information, and let Nier visit his hometown properly… But we’ll stay away from there if there’s too much risk for us due to townsfolk attitudes, or the Black Scrawl._

-   _If… if people at the village do start contracting Black Scrawl, I’d like to take Yonah out of there just in case, if it’s possible. Get her to a spot where she’s less likely to contract it…_

 

Another meaningful look between Kainé and Emil had them pondering on how long they can avoid the truth of what the Black Scrawl really was. There was no way to get it from someone else, after all…

-  _I agree… I mean, a person who got miraculously cured from Black Scrawl living in a society where some people develop it all of a sudden… it’d be troublesome for Yonah, even if the illness can’t be contracted directly…_

-  _Did you manage to learn about whether it at all infectious? Can you get it from someone who has it?_

-  _To the best of our knowledge, it was some tool of the shades and Grimoire Noir, but now that Noir is gone, it may behave far more erratically than before. But it doesn’t seem able to transmit normally, or at least didn’t back then, so I’m more worried about people acting as if they somehow got it, rather than Yonah actually getting it again from anyone._

Nier nodded, and Emil suddenly got up.

-  _By the way, Kainé, this place also has a little bit of clothes for Sebastian and even people who used to work in that underground laboratory… including shoes. I know your shoes are somehow really tough, but you may as well pick out some alternative clothes in case any of yours get damaged too, right?_

Kainé’s eyebrow raised, but she noticed Emil was, while they were talking, already reading a book he deemed ‘useless’ but ‘interesting’. Why’d he specifically sort out books that were ‘useless but interesting’? He could read those anytime he wanted as long as he was here. This meant this book was *useful* for things they didn’t quite want Nier to know yet.

Kainé nodded, standing up to follow Emil out of the room. To her surprise, there was indeed some additional clothing prepared, but Emil just immediately sat down in the other room and opened the book at a specific page.

-  _This isn’t something Nier specifically cannot know, I guess, but I thought maybe you wanted to learn this without involving him as of yet._

-  _What’s wrong?_

-  _It’s not that something is *wrong* specifically. I believe something important changed after you fought the Shadowlord, now that I know what this… bleeding and odd behavior you mentioned could mean. Sit down, I’ll try to explain._

 

Kainé did end up sitting down, although she realized she couldn’t read the book Emil was holding.

-  _You need really old books to get that sort of information… Well, it’s not like many new books are created these days, but I think that there might’ve been an effort to remove certain positions from libraries. So we would never learn this at Façade or in Nier’s village, I believe. Uhhh, there are two passages that interest us in regards to this._

-  _… You really studied this big of a book to find out why the hell I’m bleeding from my snatch? I feel bad for lying to Nier now._

\-   _It’s okay, because turns out it’s more important than we thought. You see… apparently certain species have a different mechanism of breedable periods. Uhm, I originally learned the similarity through a passage about bats. This one. “Several species of bats share the characteristic of a menstrual cycle with primates, such as humans.” So, afterwards, it was the question of finding a mention of what a menstrual cycle is in the first place, and how it works, because this is a passage on bats’ breeding, and how they relate to other species mechanism of such._

-  _Less talking about bat sex, Emil. What’d you learn?_

-  _It wasn’t at all easy to find this stuff, you know! I had to think really hard and search through dozens of connections, but it’s amazing. Like, really, really amazing._

\-   _… How is it amazing?_

-   _The menstrual cycle is a mechanism related to removal of certain tissue types from the v… well… girl parts…which is basically a response to the body’s changes as it makes an effort to prepare itself to make a baby. At the end of any menstrual cycle, the accumulated, less-than-necessary tissues are removed, usually along with a not impregnated thing necessary for species that have this mechanism to breed… a reproductive cell, or so it was called._

-  _I’m… not sure I really get it?_

-  _Well, when you think about it, replicants are artificial humans that are essentially created as bodies, vessels, for specific ‘gestalts’, yes?_

- _That’s what the reports, Popola, Devola, and Weiss claimed, yeah._

-  _That’s the issue. Replicants are artificial. So, people who were born as replicants were likely made artificially, and not birthed by another like a little animal would be._

 

 

Kainé pondered on it for a moment.

-  _There was usually a small group of people present at birth of new babies. It was always the same group. Could it be that they were only fooling people into thinking a baby was going to be born, and just knocked them out cold and then told them they’ve had a kid? Shit… that’s heavy._

-  _It’s true… I think that story is likely, Kainé, but that is not the point. You’ve never had these bleedings before, right?_

-  _Well, it’s not like I remember everything, but I don’t think I did, and especially not in any conceivable rhythmic cycle, no._

-  _But now, you experience mood changes from your hormones, and then bleeding at the end of a cycle. It’s all rather hard for me to understand, but essentially, even if your cycle isn’t monthly like the books suggested… Might be related to your body, but… It’d mean you started to have menstrual and fertility cycles._

-  _… Are you saying what I think you’re saying, Emil?_

\-   _Y…yes. Sorry for saying something so embarrassing, Kainé, but I’m pretty sure you’re likely the only woman in the world right now who’d might be able to have a baby the way original humans did._

 

Kainé had to pause to even begin mulling over that information. Even with a moment to think, the first thing that came out of her mouth was sheer surprise expressed in a way typical for her.

 

\-   _… W… what the fuck? Just… just what happened back then?_

-   _It’s still only a possibility, and it’s not like it really matters if you couldn’t find another person with a similar state of being. All Gestalts will eventually relapse, and to the best of our knowledge no replicants of either gender are able to reproduce. But, there’s a pretty decent chance you’d be able to be a mother to an actual human being, Kainé. A small chance of recovery for humankind, too. And, since you’re…_

-   _Since I have a dick, too, I’d theoretically could be either is what you’re saying… I ain’t an oven, Emil. Shit, back when we knew nothing of Replicants, I was pretty sure I’m completely infertile one way or another. How did things change to this?_

-   _I don’t know. It’s impossible to tell. And it’s all still just a theory, and even if it’s true, nothing much will change if you’re the only human being able to do either. You were always strong, Kainé, and humanity has been hanging on the brink of destruction for a long time._

-   _And we pushed them off it. Not like it’s bad riddance, you know? We’ve been over and done the moment we screwed up. The moment it turned out you don’t need a soul to think… feel… That’s the moment at which we’ve already lost. Everything since then was just postponing the inevitable. What we did was more of a mercy kill to the entire species._

-  _You’re entitled to that opinion. All I am saying, Kainé, is that if someone strong and kind like you has the potential to, for the first time in decades, centuries, maybe over a millennium, bring an actual human life into this world, one way or another… That potential alone, no matter if fulfilled or not, can only be seen as something wonderful._

-  _Since when you brats learned to spit out such embarrassing things one after another, I wonder… You’re right. At this moment, this is just a piece of useless information, unless the worst of whatever this menstrual cycle is catches me at a bad moment I guess, but even then it shouldn’t affect how I fight that much. But… I was just one of many at the start, Emil. Even if I had a freak body and managed to successfully share it with a shade, I was the same as others in this fucked up world. Just… just what happened in the Shadowlord’s castle to change that? What happened to Nier, to me? What… what am I now? These questions are pretty fucking scary compared to the times I just hacked away at stuff with my swords, you know?_

-  _But you’re not alone with them. This time, me and Nier can help you out with looking for your own answers, too. If we’re all together, we can support one another in everything we do, right?_

-  _… You know what to say to at least sound wise, too. Thank you, Emil. Originally, we’ve been trying for one thing… Then we lost Nier and started trying for another. Now we’re all together… So we’ll take things at our own pace as long as we can, and damn me if I’m letting go of anyone this time._

-  _Don’t get too reckless, though. I still can’t control the strongest of my magic completely, and this time, you and Nier are unlikely to have any of your own. So, if we encounter too strong of a Shade, we should probably try to withdraw rather than fight it to the death._

-  _We’ll fight to the death if it’s important or necessary. We just have to make sure it’s their death. But, yeah. Not losing anyone is more important than showing off, I guess. And, Emil?_

-  _Yeah?_

-  _I’ll think a little about… what to do with that revelation of yours, so if you accidentally find any more books of yours on the subject, do mark them. But don’t look for them specifically unless I request it. It’s not like one snatch someone can knock up or one properly working dick is going to be saving this world, you know. Or rather, the humanity in it. But, I’ll think on whether it’s worth the effort to add that revelation into however minor its shot at saving is right now._

-  _Mhm, sure._

 

There were things that worried Emil, but for some reason, he couldn’t bring them up when talking to Kainé these days. Perhaps he also instinctively felt some of the things Nier felt about Kainé being different than before – but while Emil was rather worried about Kainé, Yonah, and Nier’s fate in a world where the Gestalts relapsed until none were left, possibly leaving all of the Replicants with Black Scrawl, and definitely leaving them to die within a generation… When talking with Kainé, he was suddenly full of hope in regards to those futures. Even though Kainé already became a Shade for some time once, the way she carried herself now, something about her after she returned from the Shadowlord’s castle and regained Nier… Something made her seem like she was able to just stand above these concerns, and caused his worries to evaporate.

Part of the reason why he grew so interested about her changes was so he could try to guess just what was it that managed to put those specific worries at ease. Maybe, as long as they’ve had plenty of time together, such things just didn’t matter anymore at this point.

 

 

Kainé herself could just barely remember actually displaying signs of Black Scrawl before Tyrann took over her body, and thinking she might’ve been getting it at some point in Shadowlord’s castle, but it was gone for the moment, and hasn’t shown up in the last three years. She certainly fought too hard to survive to think she was entirely fine with dying, but she didn’t think about what seemed to be inevitable so far. And now, other than Nier, she had a completely new thing to think about, too.

 

Placing a hand on her stomach once she wasn’t in Emil’s view range, she sighed.

[“Not only do I have to react like this now that he’s back, now I need to be overly conscious of just what some of these reactions would normally mean for human beings… and that I may be having the same things affect me that an original human would.”]

 

Taking her hand off her stomach, she decided it was the time to start trying to face reality at least inside of her own mind.

[“I can’t even remember how well I controlled the sexual side of my feelings back then, when I felt so strongly about Nier when my five year petrification period was done. So I can’t even make any bets or promises on whether I’ll be able to control myself even around his bratty version. Shit. He’s still just a kid. He still feels like he barely knows me. I didn’t try to fuck Nier when he was a brat, did I? I should try to restrain my…”]

The thought stopped in her head.

[“He’s a brat. He is just a brat. Brats his age are horny themselves. As long as I’m gentle, it’s not like it’d harm him. How long I have been denying myself trying it in a way that’d actually matter, how long have I avoided trying to get a sexual act to mean *something*? I don’t even know anymore. But it was years combined with how long I’ve been denied after he was taken away from me. There’s no reason for me to act like a fucking responsible adult *now*. The humanity’s fucked over anyway, this world’s a shitstorm of a dump, and my heart and body just can’t take it much longer, it seems. I’ll be patient, but I won’t be denying myself anymore. If Nier is able to develop that sort of a relation with me and seems to be okay with one starting, he’s going to be swimming in my fucking sex juices if I have a say in it. Just as long as he’s fine with it and knows it is *not* meaningless and empty sex.”]

 

With her additional resolve steeled, one more weight has been lifted from Kainé’s mind and conscience. There it was. “That something kind of weird happening in her heart.” A bunch of white light was slowly making its way back in, only dulled by the sheer power of her desires and physical instincts.

Did Tyrann manage to feel the same in the end, after how long they’ve been joined?

That was the one question Kainé would never get an answer to.


	6. 2b - Blades and Sheaths

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nier, Kainé, and Emil have had enough scouring the library and move out to try and gather some resources and weapons from nearby towns. New, awkward enemies are found, and situations unveil until Kainé realizes even the freakiest of shades is not the worst situation she'll have to come up against, and there's even more possibly in Nier's mystery than one could've thought.

The group continued to try and gather up the books for later usage, marking passages and chapters that seemed useful and writing small notes on which people were able to read specific books – which pretty much ended with Emil’s and Sebastian’s names being stamped almost everywhere and Nier and Kainé feeling a little humbled on their skills. Nier wondered how Emil came into possession of so many books written in what seemed to be languages and alphabets that were either unusual or dead and no longer in use – sometimes both.

The boy realized that the two were close and very affectionate with each other, and he realized that the Emil person once looked like a normal or relatively normal human being, so his current appearance was likely a result of some tragedy or another. He was also able to feel welcomed by the other one, and Emil’s voice was always both warm and kind of cute. The dichotomy between Emil’s appearance and his voice as well as general behavior was about as drastic as the change he saw in Kainé. The swordswoman still fell back easily into cussing and being irritated, and her fighting power and prowess was scary, but he could see her warm expressions directed at both Emil and himself. She was more mysterious than before, as if hiding a secret from Nier, but all the while made him feel like that secret was something that brought them closer together rather than pried them apart.

He missed Yonah, but was assured she was safe, if in a problematic state. He still wanted to prove whether that was true or something Kainé said to calm him down, but if it *was* true, it seemed like staying with Yonah would be problematic or a very drawn-out process.

What felt odd to Nier is how he understood that even if for whatever reason he couldn’t be at Yonah’s side, he now had another place he could possibly call home at some point, or rather, he was invited to try and make a home alongside Kainé and Emil, in a manner of speaking.

But if Yonah’s memory of him was indeed partially or completely gone, he felt like he was to be blamed due to always running around trying to heal her and never being at her side. It made him feel inadequate that, in the end, Weiss, Kainé, and Emil apparently succeeded at healing her illness with almost no input from him. It felt a little bad to hear Weiss was gone and that they’ve been tricked into thinking the Sealed Verses would be of significant help, although apparently the problem was partially caused by their ability to get most, and not all of them.

Nier noticed Kainé and Emil trying to simplify their story for him and omitting details, but thanks to it it felt somewhat plausible – only that he had no way to confirm it. His heart was telling him that somehow Kainé was simultaneously lying to him and being honest with him, which only served to confuse him more and make him decide he couldn’t trust intuition or feelings on this one, but Kainé’s warmer and more teasing behavior was making even that resolution difficult to hold onto.

 

With a pile of books ready back home to, and a couple packed up on their trip, the group prepared to leave for their first target – Seafront town. The amount of produce going through that place would’ve allowed them to get plenty of food, and Kainé’s somewhat minimalistic lifestyle as well as many materials gathered by Emil allowed for them to feel somewhat confident about the amount of wealth they overall possessed in case there was an interesting weapon there they could buy.

The group’s also realized they’d need to buy some clothes for Nier, and Kainé was curious about switching her outfits up a bit as well; there weren’t a whole lot of feminine clothes in Emil’s mansion, so she’d rather stick to her usual garments, but she did take to an odd costume Emil claimed people working at the laboratory below would sometimes wear. It was a buttoned up, blue, long-sleeved cloth that ended midway down her thighs, apparently made to protect from sprays of fluids and various ‘accidents during experiments’, as Emil put it. What she wore was likely a replica made by Sebastian rather than something surviving from the times people experimented in that lab, but the fabric was a little different form anything she’s seen before, and it was supposedly ‘easy to clean’, so she took it. In her mind, she specifically wanted Nier to score a little victory in regards to her outfit’s “humility”, and also wanted both herself and Nier to get a little more comfortable with her mind and her body.

Still, Kainé’s long legs and the breasts that, especially now that she was completely past the phase where a body still grew, couldn’t really be called small made even the relatively professional-looking lab coat somewhat indecent, although she decided to only leave the uppermost button open and thus not show off as much as usually.

Nier was still wearing a slightly less formal version of Emil’s old clothes, and Emil simply continued to cover himself with a relatively high-quality fabric masquerading as a ‘rag’.

 

If anyone remembered the group and met them now, it’d be quite the image change indeed.

Now, as they were striding towards Seafront, Kainé tried to remember the last time they journeyed to that place, but couldn’t remember actually doing anything with Nier in that place, despite visiting it. This likely meant Nier never took her to Seafront before her petrification…

So she made another minor blunder by talking about it casually almost like he did. The trip from Emil’s mansion to Seafront wasn’t a particularly long one, but they detoured a little when they’ve given chase to a small group of deers in hope of getting some additional free food. While they’ve taken one down easily enough, just when Kainé was about to perform one of her insane leaps to cut off the path they’ve been using to run, something else instead made the group of mammals try and escape as fast as they could in completely random directions, with two more of them being slaughtered on the spot.

The Southern Plains occasionally had a dangerous shade trying to attack passerbys, but that shade was no more. Clearly, however, the place has been ‘blessed’ with being a popular spot for relapsed Gestalts.

 

A larger one surrounded by smaller Shades, this creature was unlike any regular Shade or even a completely relapsed and mixed group Kainé has seen up until now. The unnerving appearance made Nier uncomfortable – only recently, he learned the Shades were once human beings, and now he was met with something that might’ve confirmed that. It’s body was a shade of grey, quite a bit brighter than most other than Shadowlord himself. The facial features were distorted but quite humanoid; the face would’ve been one of a man with a thick jaw and slightly overgrown teeth, if the nasal bridge and the area above wasn’t gone from the visage in favor of fluttering, almost black smoke revealing small flashes of a dusky orange glow that appeared to extend from that spot only to form small, eyelike dots in the being’s caved eye sockets.  But the similarities mostly focused on the face and generally humanoid, naked appearance; its neck appeared non-existent, instead with his head and shoulders being joined by what appeared to be a direct extension of his skull, with no hair visible anywhere, and its limbs looked distended, lanky, and ending in vicious claws. Its body looked famished, but with just a mildly visible belly and pectorals, as if it hasn’t always been so. It was also a little more stable and solid-looking than most shades they’ve met. Finally, below its belly that was the creatures characteristic that was at once both disturbing, and impossible to take seriously.  The monster appeared to be about twice as tall as Kainé when lightly hunched, but right now, they were looking at a little below their eye level.

-  _This is just fucking wrong._ – Kainé summed it up immediately as she drew on her blades, preparing to fight the small swarm of Shades ascending in front of the big one.

-  _Kainé, it’s carrying a…_

-  _I KNOW. It’s fucking impossible to miss! That’s why it’s so goddamn wrong. This guy has a fucking hand there! With a sword! The fucking Shade’s battling with a literal sword sticking out of his fuuuucking groin!_

Nier couldn’t help but shake his head after that. Just when he was about to almost be frozen in spot from seeing such a unique-looking shade with a humanlike face, Kainé kept bringing attention to that one, unique point – a weirdly placed third arm – in a way that made it impossible to treat the boss seriously.

Emil even wondered if she did it specifically so Nier would relax after seeing the odd form of their opponent.

 

Taking down a shade that tried to sneak up on a slightly distracted Nier with a ray of energy, Emil watched Nier chase after the charging Kainé, drawing his own blade as well. Kainé dodged the strikes of the two minor Shades only to be charged by the large one, who attempted to grab her with one of its elongated, strong arms. It was then when Nier noticed just how fast Kainé could be when fighting serious in a battle to the death. Sliding under the swing of the beast’s arm, she swung her own leg to trip one of the metal-clad shades almost surrounding her now. When the beast tried to get close and use the third arm to stab her with the sword, Kainé lunged up, smashed the freshly-tripped shade to the ground seemingly before he hit it by propelling herself off of him, and did one of her crazy jumps. Butchering two more creatures with her blades, she finished off a third one as gravity inevitably brought her down, right onto the shoulders of a larger, stocky Shade.

Nier managed to quickly dispose of two shades that tried to block his path – he noted that, thankfully, he wasn’t rusty at all – but only then he was able to fully catch up to Kainé’s lightning-like moves. He knew the final landing point of a Shade would be thrown off balance by her next move, so he quickly darted towards that one, preparing for a powerful strike just as Kainé pushed herself off of him and once again flew through the air like a bullet. Her swinging blades cutting the massive, humanlike Shade mid-air before her landing placed her in a position to continue the assault from behind the creature, avoiding coming into contact with the blade-bearing lower arm.

Kainé herself didn’t know if the creature’s unlikely characteristic made her disturbed or giddy, especially given the fact the third hand appeared almost entirely human in shape and size.

 

Slicing at the beast’s legs, arms, and lower back, Kainé continued her assault while Nier and Emil indiscriminately eliminated the quickly-deteriorating group of smaller Shades. Some of the critters even seemed intent on escaping.

Kainé had to bounce back at the rapid attack from above when the annoyed creature tried to dart down and bite her neck off with its large jaw, and when she sprung to continue her assault, she found the first two strikes being parried with the beast’s sword and one of its larger hands’ claws.

-  _Halboltua!_

With Emil shouting something weird, the creature’s back seemed to be immediately razed by a flash of red and green light mixing together, with Kainé’s positioning making it impossible to really witness the shape of the magic used. It was definitely effective, however, causing the creature to go out of balance as it roared in pain, and Kainé immediately charged up to it, jumping up and slashing along its body from below, then trying to slice at its neck while kicking herself off of him again.

But she only barely connected with her sword, and that’s when she realized the being’s form was balanced and humanoid enough to allow it to stand on just one leg for a short while.

Spinning around, Kainé successfully took advantage of her battle senses to strike at the creature’s leg in two points as it swung it, trying to bash the swordswoman away. Her crazy strength caused another anguished sound from the being and battled the leg’s momentum in a manner that seemed to almost defy physics, but ultimately Kainé couldn’t do that just yet; the larger and stronger part of the clash won, altering Kainé’s course and causing her to bounce off the ground once before she stopped, on her hands and knees with swords in hands like a cat preparing to leap once again after getting struck.

-  _Ouch…. Oucheeeehell. This thing’s packing a decent kick, too._

She had to take a moment to get herself up and back into the battle, but her recuperation time seemed to cut itself in short when she’d seen the shades immediately turn their full attention to Nier, trying to limit his movements as the thing’s crotch-hand begun to try dueling him, swing for swing. Nier’s skill and strength were really put to the test, because even the smallest of the being’s hands seemed to carry a decent amount of strength and its weapon was lighter than Nier’s, allowing for fast slices that would’ve overwhelmed the younger fighter if he wasn’t just that much better than the thing’s freak arm at bladework. Still, he was in trouble with all the shades ganging up on him now, and just that made Kainé furious about the situation.

-  _Get the fuck off him you shithogs!_

Striking at the group assaulting Nier, Kainé’s blades rapidly sent one after the other into oblivion, but left her open to the beast’s counterattack. Only barely moving in time to bounce the claws off of her blades in a parry, the sneaky thing cut low with its sword, slicing up Kainé’s coat and wounding her successfully despite her tilt to the side to minimize damage. This, however, along with another quick ray-attack from Emil, left Nier free to carry out his own counter, slashing the same leg that Kainé damaged before and copying her move by jumping onto the beast’s hip after a quick uppercut with his sword, leaving him even further damaged.

The group of shades was smaller than before, but they still threatened to block their movements soon if they kept swarming them while one side was blocked by the large shade’s attacks.

-  _Kainé, please just get yourself and Nier away from them for a moment!_

Hearing Emil’s voice, Kainé did the best and quickest thing she could think of – drew the large Shade’s next attack to herself, then grabbed Nier as she tripped him, carrying him on her back as she darted out of the increasingly tight space between the Shades and finally leaped through the air again, trying to spin enough so she’d be able to see what was going on.

Emil quickly fired another spell, with her swearing she heard that silly name again. It looked like a mildly zigzagging strand of magical energy, green and red mixing together and making it seem like the bolt was flashing one color after the other. When hitting the Shades, it seemed to easily destroy a couple of the small fry at once, and Emil immediately followed up with two of his basic rays of magic, one from each hand… but, at the same time, the spell was recharging practically on its own.

-  _Halboltua!_

The blast came again, weakening or completely obliterating the remaining Shades, stopping them in their tracks… but the largest monster didn’t care. It simply trampled its companions as he tried to charge the temporarily immobilized and entangled Kainé and Nier. Kainé quickly wrapped her arm around Nier’s neck and – making sure to be careful -  pulled him up for their bodies to properly realign themselves, practically laying him on her and wrapping her legs over him. Then, she immediately rolled off a small hill with him still wrapped up with her, forcing the beast to alter the course of its charge and slowing it down. Kainé ended up being atop of Nier after the roll, just as she wanted, but thankfully the young man had no time or mind to be embarrassed about the situation just yet. Getting one hand and leg off of the ground, Kainé gave Nier a good sign as to in which direction he should move, and he  immediately darted out from underneath her. The beast’s next attack almost struck Kainé, but she strained her body even further to make it strike the ground just in time. She then used the creature’s hand to push herself off in the direction of the creature’s next strike, kicking a not-fast-enough other hand before it managed to get a good swing at her, then quickly bringing herself to a seated position as she sliced the hand behind her with both blades. Trying to get back up on her legs, she was well aware of the situation being one in which she had to take damage.

The creature’s arms pulled themselves off the ground as it once again tried to kick her, with its as-of-yet unhurt leg this time… only for Nier to jump at the thigh, making a lunging attack that cut through that leg, too. Pain weakened the kick enough for Kainé to manage a successful semi-block with her blades, but her back nevertheless slammed into a nearby tree hard enough to give a cracking sound from the wood.

The creature turned immediately in a motion that’d look ridiculous if it had a *proper* groin rather than a hand with an actual sword, slicing at Nier who blocked the strike, then bent forward to slap him with the arm Kainé just cut. The hit was enough to push Nier back towards the approaching finall small group of shades and send him flat on his butt, but Kainé was already darting past the evidently easily-distracted large monster, slicing along its leg as she did, and indicating to Nier that he was still in trouble. The agile young fighter managed to quickly get back up on his feet as his blade clanked on the armor of one of the shades, forcing it on the ground only for Nier to pierce through it. Kainé butchered two more then kicked the third off of its balance, with Nier successfully ending its existence in his next strike. Emil’s twin beams found their way to the creature that prepared to continue its assault on them. Kainé was impressed with Emil’s beams coming a lot faster than in the past and often in pairs now, but there was one aspect of his magic that annoyed her in this particular battle.

The two blade-using members of the squad then turned to face the tall creature. Its current target was Kainé, as evident when they stood slightly apart, and Nier was quick to adapt to it, slicing across its hip and the hand it used to try and assault Kainé again as its arms approached from both sides. The pain caused the creature’s swing to be off its mark as Kainé bounced off to the side and extended her blade; the creature’s hands slamming together caused her sword to manage to pierce through an earlier wound she caused in its palm, with the saw-like edge just making the situation worse.  The beast tore its palm away from Kainé’s strike and slammed its ‘bleeding’ hand back into the ground, which surprised Kainé as afterwards red magic orbs materialized and were sent forth by the strike.

[“… Can it be its magic can only be properly released out of wounded spots? Or is he just learning how to do any long-distance attacks whatsoever?”]

Kainé tried to parry the orbs, but got struck by one anyway. The creature lunged forwards to try and bite her once more, but with Nier’s sword once again damaging its leg, Kainé had an easy time dodging and slicing up its chest, moving in closer and closer as her blades danced and effectively cut up the beast’s entire torso. Parrying the shade’s blade-strike, Kainé got close enough to use her second sword and chop at the beast’s third hand.

 

Somehow, she stopped right before she did. She didn’t know if the hesitation came from the shade’s third arm appearing where genitals should be, and her inherent sympathy to being struck in that particular spot of the body, from odd refusal to see that spot fire anything magical at her if her previous hypothesis was correct, or from simple realization removing the blade in this manner would possibly allow the creature a magical attack and simply deciding getting struck by it here was risky.  

But she hesitated for too long, and the blade sneaked in another cut on her. The beast’s mass shifted as its cut-up chest released another set of magic-orbs, the missiles flying her way and obstructing her focus with trying to swat them away.

\- Oh, crap… - was Kainé’s reaction as the creature’s lanky arm finally swung at the pace, strength, and with accuracy all high enough for her to take the first *serious* damage in the fight, sending her flying, landing on her back, and dropping one of her swords along the way.

 

It really hurt, and she was worried about her bones for once with no Tyrann around to make the damage caused to her skeleton meaningless, but Nier apparently had enough of the creature trying to hurt his friend. His focus remained as he plunged his blade into its abdomen, turned it like a screw inside, then landed two quick, powerful swings to the blade sticking out below the wounded spot to make the hand drop the weapon while the shade was still in pain. Nier successfully dodged the clumsy attempt at a counter-attack, and Kainé felt Emil upon her, touching her shoulders with hands that seemed charged with some kind of energy. Her muscles contracted and relaxed, and she felt like an electric shock passed through them, but at the same moment a wave of regenerating influence seemed to move through her body. No longer worried about broken bones, Kainé clutched her sword both-handed and charged the creature just as Nier hacked and slashed at one of its legs.

-  _Step away!_

Warned, the young boy did jump out of the range of the creature’s leg or Kainé’s swing, which did finally mangle the beast’ leg to the point of it simply coming off, leaving the shade unbalanced.

-  _It’ll fire magic! Watch out!_

Nier was well-prepared and dodged to the side when a stream of dark purple and red energy burst out of the creature’s stump, followed by a bolt of energy that homed in on each of them, stopped by the rays from Emil’s hands and then bounced against the nearest flat surface with Kainé’s and Nier’s swords. Kainé withdraw a bit and grabbed her other sword as the beast roared, trying to move towards them, but having to slide on the ground in a peculiar manner with the small hand and one of its arms trying to balance out the lack of a leg.

-  _He’s… he’s using it as a third leg now._

- _That’s in terrible taste, Emil. I told you this thing looks all fucking wrong. Urgh._

The beast moved close enough to prepare to attack, but rather than try to get into melee range, the leg seemed to charge the homing missile again, and the many wounds on its chest manifested red magic orbs.

There was a peculiarity in the creature. The homing energy bolts appeared like something Weiss would fire, it could only use magic when wounded, and the blade it carried seemed as if Kainé saw it somewhere before.

-  _Nier, I’m a little battered. Can I trust you and Emil to cut a path through these crappy shade projectiles?_

-  _Sure enough. Are you okay?_

-  _Yeah. Emil helped. Get ready._

 

Nier swung his sword in wider arcs, successfully discharging the life-sapping magic orbs as they flew at him, and Emil fired a beam into Kainé’s and Nier’s path to help them out, then another at the being’s head to help out with surprising it afterwards.

 

Kainé followed Nier’s footsteps carefully, preparing her strength for one final leap, and after she was close enough and Emil’s attack distracted the shade, she jumped. Both of her blades reached their target, the now-crawling shade’s head at the height where she’d be able to cut just under it. The blades couldn’t completely remove its head from its shoulders due to the way in which it was put together, but Kainé backed off a bit and knelt, allowing Nier to use her as a jumping spot himself. Swinging his sword, the blade proved highly effective this time as Nier finished decapitating the beast, then jumped off its shoulder to avoid being right at where it could potentially release magic if the strike wasn’t enough to finish it off.

However, with the humanoid shape of the shade, Kainé’s suspicion proved correct. She did have to quickly get out from underneath the beastie as it fell forward, but the decapitation left it slowly dissipating into smoke as evidently it partially shared a traditional human’s weak spot. She turned to see and hear Nier groan lightly from landing after falling from this high up, but he seemed about as well-off as her, despite not receiving Emil’s healing magic yet.

Even three and a half years back, Emil was able to reverse petrification and, possibly with Weiss’ help and after they’ve roughed her up some, force back Tyrann’s transforming her into a full shade. After three and a half years, the ‘medical’ side of his powers developed enough to help heal regular wounds, which would have to serve as a substitute to her regeneration brought by Tyrann.

The problem was, Emil also had to substitute their magical attack – her and those gained by Weiss. It made sense that he was careful about overdoing it with his magic yet – if it got out of control, there’d be problems. Still, he was effective in using his spells with them around, but Kainé was glad they managed to slay this shade without a magical finisher for once.

However, there was something to be addressed, and she crouched down in front of Nier to do it.

-  _Good job. But, this blade didn’t seem that strong back when we sparred. Were you holding back on me? Did you want to be a big hero when it came to real fighting, so you only went crazy serious now? Or is it just that you got properly in sync with this sword at last?_

-  _It’s not like I excessively held back or anything. I just knew I can’t let you keep getting roughed up like this, Kainé, so I tried my best._

-  _Trying to protect a girl even after she kicked your ass? Surprisingly mature of you, Nier. You did good there, I’ve been a little too careless again. This Shade’s tougher than it looked like, but it seems like some shades are having more trouble with their magics now._

 

Kainé was well aware the way she crouched and the way her coat were slices up were somewhat revealing, but it’s nothing that Nier couldn’t have seen in her day-to-day costume, so she didn’t mind or make any move to cover herself.

-  _Emil, please patch Nier up a bit, too, then we’ll go to Seafront. No more detours this time. It’s been a while since we were able to fight as a group together like this, so maybe we shouldn’t get into every tough encounter we can. First and foremost, though, thank you both for helping out… and we should check that sword this shade’s been using._

 

Standing up, Kainé looked down at Nier for a moment. She wanted to praise him for pulling his own weight, but it was still difficult to express such things without making it seem awkward. She decided he sufficiently understood from her noticing he appeared more effective than in their duel, but resolved to try and find a way of complimenting her companions when possible. Stepping over from the duo, unaware of Nier’s eyes being naturally drawn to her legs, she stepped over to where the blade was dropped. Also scanning the area for more danger, Kainé decided they seemed safe.

[“It appears I can no longer hears Shades, or at least not with the same clarity. A couple voices in my head less, I guess. Tyrann’s really gone, and seems like there’s nothing left to show for his appearance before. Not sure I wanna seek him out…”]

 

She picked up the sword while thinking of the only creature in the world who could properly explain to her what might’ve happened in Shadowlord’s castle. Shaking it off, she observed and admired the blade. It was quite long, but lighter than the sword Nier was using right now. However, while the quality seemed way behind it, Kainé could’ve sworn she saw this sword before.  The crimson blade was rather characteristic, as was the hilt.

It dawned on her. He exchanged it quickly as he bought and found better weapons, but for a very short time, during their second meeting in Aerie, Nier used this sword, or at least carried it around.

Why was it here? Did Nier sell it when she was petrified? Did he lose it? He always carried a bunch of weapons around and left others ‘just in case’ in places he visited often, as if assuming they may break or be vastly better with sufficient upgrades. He was right sometimes in the latter case, too. Was this weapon here because Nier disposed of it, or for some other reason entirely? Why’d a Shade have it?

Kainé heard Emil and Nier’s voice asking her something, so she just spun around like it was nothing. Indeed, there was no point in worrying yet, much less about a thing like this weapon – it wasn’t particularly strong after all, so Nier selling it at some point or even tossing it away made sense.

-  _It’s not exactly a bad sword, but I think yours has much more destructive power packed into it, Nier, and so do mine. Unless you’d really prefer a lighter weapon, I’d recommend sticking to the current one, especially with Emil taking pains to upgrade it a bit already._

-  _I see. Well, I did get used to th…_

Nier’s eyes also opened a little wider at seeing that sword.

-  _T… this looks exactly like a sword I once got from a guard I helped out when traveling to Seafront for the first time. It was just after I met you in Aerie, Kainé. For the first time, I mean._

Kainé screwed her lips a bit.

-  _… You’ve got a blade that looked just like this one in a place not far away from here?_

-  _Well, it was a little closer to my village and a little further from Seafront, but… yeah. That sword’s name was Moonrise, I think? I used it while Jakob and Gideon upgraded a different sword for me, so I think you even saw me use that one for a short while._

-  _And the guard gave you this for saving his life, right?_

-  _Pretty much. There were several Shades around after all. We’d have gotten overwhelmed without Weiss, too, I think, but maybe just me would’ve been enough._

Kainé’s heart beat faster.

A blade of Nier’s in possession of Shades, not far from the area in which he received it from protecting someone against Shades.

Something stirred inside of her. Something that worried her. First, her, Yonah, Emil, and Sebastian can’t remember Nier. Now, something potentially significant like this…

Noticing her worry, Emil saved her with a potential explanation.

-  _Maybe the blades came as a set and a relative of that guard or just someone from Seafront had the other sword, but wasn’t as lucky when he met the shades we’ve just beaten… Or maybe Devola and Popola took this sword from you and gave it to Shades._

-  _Maybe. But, Kainé is right. This sword’s inferior to the one you gave me, Emil. Thank you so much for making it so strong, even if it’s a little heavy. The hilt’s too short to use properly as a two-handed weapon, and I’m not that good with those yet, but I’m getting the hang of swinging it properly._

-  _I think you’re doing great, Nier! And you’re very welcome. Just think of the sword as your own._

 

[“Think of the sword as his own… Is it possible Nier used that thing Emil gave him in the past, too? He’d never be able to recognize it because his memories don’t reach the time we thought that crazy book in Emil’s library, but it’s not very far off to assume Nier’s been there as well… There’s not enough evidence to guess anything yet.”]

 

Kainé was the one to take the lead, not saying anything anymore after handing Nier the second sword.

-  _We’ll keep it just in case, but stick to using the one you have. We’ll buy some sword-sheaths or a container for weapons, and sell the weaker ones later for cash or when it’ll help us purchase a better one. Nier?_

-  _Yeah?_

-  _Make sure to tell me if you feel like you’ve seen a weapon or a place before, okay?_

-  _Sure, but why?_

-  _Just humor me._

 

 

The trip was short but silent, and the worried Kainé finally cracked a smile when she saw Emil and Nier’s slightly childish reaction to seeing the sea again. As Nier darted forwards, Emil shook his head a little.

-  _It’s been too long since I visited that place and I never really helped out that intensely here, I think, so I’ll stay outside so nobody’s worried about a four-armed short skeleton walking the streets in clear daylight._

-  _I think you should come with us. People won’t get used to seeing you if you don’t show yourself to them. Worst case scenario, we’ll negotiate entering without you if they really can’t accept it. Besides, you’re no longer traveling with a half-shade, either, so we can focus on ramming acceptance for only you in the folks’ skulls._

-  _Well, okay… though I think you shouldn’t do it if we need food and other things from here. Kainé, you seemed really absent-minded and somewhat worried back then after we’ve defeated that shade. Is something wrong?_

-  _No, Emil. Not yet at least. Right now, I’m just overthinking things. Maybe I still can’t believe all three of us being together like this is not a dream._

-  _It’s not. I know it isn’t._

-  _I better kick myself in the ass and get back into gear proper, or I’ll keep getting hurt without reason._

-  _Maybe if you wore some armor or protective g…_

-  _Wanna buy me new lingerie, wash it, or wear some of my old one around the town? Finish the sentence and we’ll pick~!_ _–_ Kaine said in a mocking, sickly sweet tone.

Laughing at Emil suddenly going silent, Kainé pet his bare skull of a head and took him inside of the city. One of the guardsmen apparently remembered them helping out some folks over three years ago, so they were let in with no trouble, but Emil was asked “not to stay motionless in front of anyone’s house for too long.” Despite Kainé wanting to punch the guy for it, she controlled herself when Emil managed to laugh it off.

The course of action was quite simple. Get food, get healing items, get clothes, take a look at the weapons, check if there’s anything else useful.   Preferably in that order. She couldn’t remember the exact setup of shops in this place, so it might’ve gotten mixed up along the way.

Two shops sold food in Seafront. One focused on fish, appropriate for this place, and one on general groceries. They’ve went to both, getting some rice, beans, and mushrooms in the grocery store and then visiting the fishmonger to stock up on sardines and some trout. Kainé could afford some slightly more exquisite seafood, but was reluctant to spend more money on it before they had all the other essentials and saw the prices in the weapon store.

Walking away from the fishmonger, a shop for clothes and fabrics seemed to be the closest target, and as such, Kainé entered it prior to taking a look at healing items.

It was a moderately sized shop run by what seemed to be either a couple or a pair of close friends or siblings, with two clients leaving for the day and apparently emptying the shop, and two rooms separated on the side as ‘dressing rooms’.

-  _We’re going to need some clothes for myself and this boy here. Feel free to measure him but please prepare some additional clothes in larger sizes for the future._

-  _I see, I see. Do you have any wishes in regards to the clothes’ colors and fabric and such, Miss?_

-  _Nier?_

-  _Uhhh… Kainé, I’m not sure if there’s any point in buying oversized clothes for me now. I mean, I know people are supposed to grow until they’re a bit over twenty, but it’ll take some time for me to seriously outgrow what I get now, right? We may as well save money and…_

 

Both the shopkeepers and her companions couldn’t help but suddenly look up at Kainé when a sound from her mouth interrupted Nier’s apparent words of common sense in the most surprising manner.

Kainé laughed. It wasn’t a mocking laugh or one you’d hear purely from a joke, though it seemed like the latter at first. It had nothing to do with her occasional snickers and small laughs during combat that both Emil and Nier could remember.

This was possibly the most pure, rejuvenating, and pearly laughter Nier and Emil have ever heard from her, and in both of their cases this high-spiritedness could only be surpassed by the joyful laughs they’ve only so-very-rarely managed to hear from their respective sisters. Only several moments later did Kainé try to stop herself from laughing, hid her mouth behind her hand, looked at Nier… And erupted in a mildly less beautiful, but quite honest and unstoppable laugh.

-  _Mfuhuhuhu… hah… hahahahahahahahahaha! I’m… I’m so sorry, it’s just that… Hah… hahahahaha… G…gosh, Nier, don’t put yourself down like this…_

-  _Heeey, what’s so funny!? I know I’m short, but I’m just being reasonable…_

-  _I haaaveee it… on reasonable authoriiityy… Haaaaahhh… No, that’s not right. Trust me on this one Nier, okay? Your family can get quite tall and seems like you folks are late bloomers with it, too. Okay? I just have a good feeling that your growth spurt is about to begin._

-  _What will we do with these clothes if you’re wrong?_

-  _I’ll think of something, all right? Anyway, tell the nice gentleman and lady your favorite colors._

-  _Samuel and Susan, miss._

-  _Dark blue and dark green clothes would probably be my favorites._

-  _Make sure they’re relatively warm and tough but flexible, even if it means they have to cost more. It’ll be good if they fit under armor just in case._

-  _I see, I see. Well, what’d it be for you, Miss?_

-  _Red, purple, black lace. I want stockings and a corset that’s easy to stretch out. I’ll also want one dress, but I’ll pick it myself.  And gloves. Preferably several._

-  _I… see…_

The couple did some small amount of mumbling but quickly started to gather up some of the clothing that appeared to suit Nier’s and Kainé’s requests.

-  _How are the dressing rooms constructed, by the way? Will it be problematic if two people share one?_

-  _There’s a single curtain in the middle of every room for when several people visit, but right now you can feel free to use both rooms to change._

-  _That’s okay, we’ll just take one._

-  _Kainé, that’s not really necessary i…_

-  _I may want your opinion on the dress. I never wore anything that’d make me look a lil’ bit cute, and you on the other hand had a whole bunch of town cuties with an adorable little sister, right? So you should be able to tell what colors suit a white-haired girl of my age._

 

Letting the two shopkeepers measure them and pile up the clothing, Kainé compared the clothes they’ve prepared for Nier with several larger-size ones and added two sets she liked to the bill immediately, then took a couple of dresses and the things more appropriate as underwear into the dressing room, then went back outside to make sure Nier entered the same one.

To Emil, the situation seemed both fishy and dangerous for some reason. Kainé probably remembered something about how Nier grew during the years they’ve spent trying to remove her petrification, but she was now using that knowledge rather up-front and without consideration right after they carefully made up that lie. Furthermore, she was very insistent on being in the same changing room as Nier, and while nothing *particularly* inappropriate could happen in a shop like this, it still made him feel just a little uneasy.

[“Is it because I am worried someone close to me like Kainé is being close with another boy? Is that what someone feels when someone’s after their sister or such? It feels more like… I’m worried for Nier. Maybe I’m worried he’ll be embarrassed… I can’t just be worried he’d find her pretty or consider it tempting to peep, right? Kainé seemed to suggest he’s mostly about Yonah, almost as if he was crushing on her. But why would I be worried about whom Nier finds pretty?”]

 

Ignoring his blurted-out quiet protests and the light flush of his face, Kainé scooted Nier into the dressing room to start trying on the clothes and such. They’ve done it in silence for a moment, but Kainé broke the silence, and Nier followed.

-  _I saw Susie sitting in a shoe shine shop. Where she sits she shines, and where she shines she sits._

-  _Don’t make up weird tongue-twisters about the shopkeeper!_

-  _Weird? I didn’t mention she was sitting on her ‘adjective’-ass yet!_

Nier broke the short pause after that.

-  _Your moods can change quite quickly these days, Kainé. You seemed extra serious around the shades and when discussing weapons, but can now laugh at that. Sorry for being short and making you think I still have a growth spurt to go through, but tho…_

-  _Those happen at different ages. You’re healthy and strong. Yonah was sickly, and she grew up much, much taller than you probably remember her._

-  _That doesn’t mean the same will happen to me._

-  _It’s okay. I’ll buy you milk from now on, so you’ll tear through these clothes in a year or two._

-  _That’s pretty much impossible, Kainé!_

-  _People say the way I jump and dress are both impossible, yet you know it’s not true._

-  _You change the subject way too easily._

-  _Mhm. Now that I’ve mentioned it… Nier?_

-  _Yeah?_

-  _You remember what I said, I presume… So I’ll ask you this. What will you do when you meet Yonah, but it turns out she really thinks you’re a stranger now? If it turns out she can’t remember?_

-  _So, you weren’t lying when you said that may happen._

-  _I’m going to say this now so you can be sure. I’d only ever lie to you if I thought it was really better for you to not know the truth. And I’d never lie to you about something so important to you as Yonah’s health. You have my word._

-  _And you’re back to being serious…_

-  _Just for the time. Yonah was always a serious matter with you, after all. Except for the look on your face when you read her letters. Or your silly sleeptalking._

-  _Y-you can stop trying to embarrass me already!_

-  _Answer the question, then._

-  _Well… If Yonah’s healthy, I’d really like to finally be able to see her happy, and spend time with her. So I’d likely try my best to find a way to recover her memory._

-  _So you’d be curing your sister of something, huh? Same as before, nothing’s changed?_

-  _Well…_

-  _Even if it was hopeless?_

-  _Even so. But, if she couldn’t remember me at all, and there was no progress, I’d try to at least visit her more often if her life wasn’t in danger._

-  _But you couldn’t live with her._

-  _That’s true. She wouldn’t want to live with a stranger, I think._

-  _Then would you be okay living with us from then on? For real, in Emil’s mansion or somewhere else. I did say I’d stick around with you. It’s actually a little easier if you don’t live at Yonah and your place, I figure._

-  _… You always slept outside… I noticed that too late, very late but I always felt sad about it from then on. If Yonah was healthier and I didn’t have to look after her all the time, I’d be trying to get people to give you a room, or talk with Yonah and Popola about letting me…_

-  _Sleep at your place? You only have two beds, don’t you, Nier? Or just one, for you both?_

-  _I-I have two!_

-  _I figured you’d get a second one when she got sick, or when your body started being more adult. But that means it’d be two adults sharing one bed, hmm…_

-  _If-if she was healthy, you could sleep with Yonah! We’d have to get a bigger bed as she grew eventually anyway! Two girls sleeping together is fine, right?_

-  _I don’t know. Most women sleeping together don’t have the sort of freakishness I have included._

-  _…_

-  _Still, enough teasing you. I’m glad you’d think of me enough to at least let me stay at your place. Do the clothes fit?_

-  _Yeah, they’re good._

-  _Are you decent?_

-  _Yes, I am…_

-  _Good, let me have a look._

 

Nier felt that was only mildly weird until Kainé walked past the curtain and to his side of the dressing room. The door was locked, and it was unlikely the shopkeepers could hear anything but mumbling as long as they kept relatively quiet, which did not describe Nier’s yelp of surprise at Kainé’s own level of dressing.

She started with the corset. It was a dark purple fabric with straps at the bottom, black lines close to the middle, and black strings connecting the two halves of the front together in a web of the string moving through holes. Kainé at this moment had it loose enough to bare some of her midriff, and yet tight enough to accentuate her body curves at the same time. The image was completed with gloves and black stockings, the woman apparently not minding the small mismatch of color.

Nier’s face flushed red, his jaw slacked, and his nose felt heated up from the sudden flush, making him feel like he was going to either sneeze or have a nosebleed – the area closer to it in fact became beet red, but nothing as comical happened. Nier did not remember his heart thumping and beating so quickly outside of a fight since he learned Yonah’s sickness had no known cure, and back then it felt a lot more grim and heavy.

-  _What’s with that sound? Huh, I guess you were right. Dark green suits you as well. How do I look?_

-  _Y-y-y-you stu-st-stupid hu-hussy what’s the p-point of asking me if I’m f-fucking decent if you’re-you’re going to show yourself wearing th-t-this!?_

-  _Huh? It doesn’t really bare anymore than my usual set, especially if it is windy. The chest bared is just in different places is all. And I’m actually wearing more on my legs than before, since I no longer have to bandage up half of my body. What’s the big deal?_

-  _Ohhh, of course…_

Nier looked to the side then turned away, trying to not imprint the sight in his memory.

-  _It’s not a big deal at all, you’re saying. You’re three years older than you were, almost four, so you see me as even more of a brat than before._

-  _The heck? You have clothing fetishes at your age after spending your entire life working for your sister’s sake? And why’re you depressing about what I sometimes call you now, of all times?_

-  _Some clothing is more embarrassing than other clothing, even if it makes no sense. I know. People were pushing things that they liked and what excited them onto me earlier than you’d think. I did my best all the way, so don’t treat me like I’m just a brat. Don’t show me something meant fo…_

-  _I’ll be wearing this sometimes, you know. And you just stood up to a three and a half meters tall fucking Shade with nothing but two people to support you against his gang and a sword in your hand, with no protection to speak of. Heck, you’ve done that repeatedly because it might’ve mattered to people you cared about for you to stand your goddamn ground. Your concern’s fucking dumb, Nier. You’ve done some of the manliest damn things I’ve seen, so you’re not a brat. If I call you one, it’s because you’re young and I tire of calling folks the same thing over and over sometimes. But heck. People would want to be your kind of brat._

-  _But you’ve been teasing me all this time, ever since I woke up! I suppose that’s better than you threatening Weiss or calling everyone bastards like earlier, but it is confusing and embarrassing, so…_

Kainé’s arms wrapped around Nier’s front. He knew her hands were strong, but even with the muscle packed underneath, her fingers and palms were hardly manly, and her embrace was gentle. She pressed her left breast against the side of his head.

-  _“Some clothes are more embarrassing than others.” If that’s true, then would it be beating quickly and loudly like this if you were really just a brat I’m trying to tease, Nier?_

-  _W…what are you putting against my ears, damnit…_

-  _Shut up. Relax, and listen. If you’re a brat, you’ve been needing a hug for a while now. If you’re not, listen to the quickening heartbeat of a woman whom you’ve seen in something people would call her names for on the street._

 

Nier did spend a moment in silence. Kainé’s attitude kept surprising him. He didn’t think she could show the kinds of faces and expressions she’d shown Emil. He didn’t think her laugh could be cute and beautiful like it was moments ago. He didn’t think she could build up people’s self-confidence and courage with her crass language. But most of all, he didn’t think her body felt so warm and soft, and that she was able to hug someone else so gently and comfortingly.

-  _You’ve been… standing up to pretty much everything I’ve had and more. Don’t call doing just that manly. Desperation and courage are different things, but neither is tied to gender._

-  _It wouldn’t matter if it’s courageous or manly, you know. I’m doomed to being a little manly too, I guess. The clothing’s always been a counter to that. A challenge to the world to see I lack nothing a woman should have, even if every other word I say is cussing, and my panties stretch too much for a girl. So, we’ve both challenged things that seemed able to crush us. But, maybe doing that is courageous or just a moment of desperation or craziness, and it doesn’t matter which gender does it. But doing it for someone else, for someone important to you and weaker than you? That’s what a man does. So, yeah, Nier. You’ve got the man thing covered, and you’ll just be getting even better at it, so don’t worry about anyone who actually knows you thinking otherwise._

-  _Then why would you show yourself like that to me?_

-  _Heck, Nier, there’s like a thousand possible reasons for it. Pick one. Your opinion matters because you know me, so I might’ve wanted to hear it. I show off my body all the time, so I didn’t think much of it, but when you got fucking flushed, it became a bigger deal to me._

Her heart was beating more strongly in her chest. He could really hear it, despite his ear being drowned in softness.

-  _Maybe it’s because it’s a place where that’s relatively normal. There’s a thousand other maybes that’d Weiss tell me shouldn’t be whispered in the ear of a young boy when I’m hugging him to my chest. But I’ve seen and learned more about you than you’d think, Nier. And you’re growing up to be a person one could be proud to know, in any other world than this. And because of the shit I’ve done in the past, the unforgivable things I’ve done and the unforgivable things I’ve had done to me, I’m proud I met you and let you help me find some shade of meaning for my life even in this crazy ruined world we’re in. There, I’ve spat all this crap out. How’s my heart? Do I sound calm and cocky about saying such embarrassing things virtually in my underwear?_

-  _N…no, Kainé. It’s beating really fast. You make… a good point. I’m just confused. But… thank you._

-  _For the view, or the boob in the ear?_

-  _For telling me this, gosh!_

-  _Ohhh,I see, the view doesn’t affect you. You’ve gotten enough of a view living with Yonah everyday… like them more petite than you, do you?_

-  _M…ay… I don’t know, okay? And it’s not like that with Yonah! It really isn’t!_

-  _But it could be if you’ve seen her fresh after she was cured. Starting to live under one roof or sleep close to someone who’s grown, but we weren’t there to see them grow? Let me tell you, it’s a temptation, all right._

Kainé’s instincts were running over her thoughts and even the rationality of her story, as subtle as the stabs at the truth about Nier were. [“Why the hell would I tell him that?”]

-  _Y…you’re saying crazy things again._

-  _You’re a-fucking-cute when you’re teased, Nier, but that’s the last thing you may need to fix. So I’m helping you with fixing it. Obliviousness and shyness will be the only things between you and a line of girls… Hum, the only?_

She loomed over his shoulder and looked down. Right below his waist.

-  _Yeah, looks like it. These will be the only things between you and a line of girls if you ever show your big fucking shade-slayer hero moments with any greater audience around._

-  _You’ve seen something embarrassing, didn’t you?_

-  _I’d be pretty much the same way as you are if you had less clothing, yourself. And when Tyrann was in me, I’ve gotten like this after I’ve *killed* enough people. It’s not embarrassing to me, so don’t bother._

-  _That’s still the way it is to others…_

-  _No, no, Nier. I’ve made light of it, said it’s not a big deal, and you’re acting like you want to be embarrassed and teased about it. Opposite’s the way. A woman in a corset and nothing else is hugging you. Her breast was just against your ear. You’re a goddamn healthy young man who can cut up a shade two and a half times his size into small pieces. What should you be saying about your body being like this?_

-  _It’s… a natural reaction?_

-  _Damn straight it is. Fuck. It’s actually a compliment too, if I had a way of knowing it wasn’t my talk about your sister or just thinking about boobs against ears in general that got you there._

-  _Kainé, you’re pretty. It may be difficult to overlook some thing or another about your body for many, but it doesn’t make a difference to me because… Ugh… You’re pretty, and that… doesn’t make a difference to me be… *sob, sob*… bec…ause, in this city, I’ve…_

-  _Nier? Nier, what’s wrong?_

Kainé spun the smaller boy around with a look of concern on her face at his sudden reaction. He didn’t seem in pain or be choking, so it meant she managed to somehow step on a landmine.

-  _I…if it’s something I did or said, I’m sorry, okay? D…don’t cry over some shitty dumb thing I did! You bastard, just fucking punch me, don’t make me feel so bad about it!_

-  _N…no. It’s… in the past. Yonah’s healthy so it… it was not meaningless. We pushed through so it wasn’t meaningless. I’m okay. I’m okay._

Kainé closed her eyes. She understood. Nier saw enough to know quite well about her bonus appendage, even young as he was, he could catch on her and the others’ words. And now, she was understanding what he might’ve gone through as well.

-  _So you did something that makes you sad or angry or embarrassed to death in this town to help Yonah through, huh… I’ll never say a word, and you don’t have to, either. I’ve done something terrible at your town when you were gone, too. And I’ve cried because I couldn’t understand why it was so easy for me to do after you tried to give my life meaning and become my friend. So it’s okay to cry over this, Nier._

-  _K…Kainé?_

-  _Yeah?_

-  _Did you ever… Like a man and a woman, did you ever…_

-  _Yeah, kiddo. I did._

-  _It’s supposed to feel good, right?_

-  _You gotta make it means something for it to really feel good, I think, unless you’ve got some crazy needs and compatibility with others. If it’s entirely meaningless, it just takes the edge off of you. That’s what I came to believe._

-  _I… I see. So you think that. I see._

-  _Nier?_

-  _It’s okay, I’m ok…_

-  _No, I wanted to ask something. You felt ashamed and burned off your desire to do such things by fighting first and foremost, right?_

-  _Y…yeah._

-  _I’d be doing that too, if Tyrann didn’t brainwash me to make fighting just make it worse most of the time. So I’m a pack of frustration. And my body and yours have that similarity, I know more than you think about how you may feel._

Nier’s features flushed again.

-  _People will think we’ve been here too long, let’s get back to dr…dressing. There’s no need to hear more embarrassing things. You’re forcing yourself to talk about this, I can tell._

-  _No, Nier. There are moments in my life when I didn’t say things, and some people, including you, gave me a chance to start over again. I don’t want to regret keeping quiet if… fuck, if I can’t dull it with violence or with dying myself. And I can’t anymore. You can feel I’m different, right? You noticed several times._

-  _Yes, but… I can still tell you’re embarrassed to talk about it in this kind of manner. Especially to someone young like me who just cried in front of you._

\-   _Just shut up and listen._

Nier was surprised at the forcefulness in her voice, enough to actually do listen to her.

-  _I’m going to try to make it so you can fight less compared to the past, even if there will be more shades than before attacking. I want you to be able to take it easy and enjoy yourself sometimes. You’re growing and becoming a man, a marvelous man. So if you need time alone, tell me. Fuck, if you want me to help you with it and are fine with this goddamn freakshow of a body, you can tell me that instead._

-  _K…Kainé!_

-  _You’ll know how it feels. The aching, the loneliness. When you can’t drown it out with violence, it’ll become frustrating and you’ll turn weird. Push people away when you don’t want to, be ashamed when there should be nothing to be ashamed of, do dumb things and regret them, linger too long and be too slow when you could’ve just… just let something be because every fucking part of your brain and your heart regrets not being able to see or do something, just for a short while. I want you to be happy, even if the world is in so much of a mess, even if there’s a lot of trouble ahead. At least for a while. What I just said before… It’s actually good for relaxation, so freaking relax away, Nier. If my presence is actually helpful, that’d be a nice change of pace for me, too, but I’ll just drag everyone the fuck out of there if you need to be alone._

-  _It’s still shameful, and you being there won’t make it different. There are things that should be only done with specific people, people you…_

-  _I did say you have to make some acts have meaning, and yet others, you don’t. I’m a fucking wreck, Nier, a mess. This world sucks, and I used to hate it. There’s no way I would, or will now, have enough time, patience, charm, everything and anything to make someone see me in that way. So don’t tell me this crap now, okay? I’ll be happy enough to help you if I can, and it’ll affirm at least one thing moderately good about me if I’m actually helpful like that._

-  _You really changed, Kainé. You… you’re crying a bit, too._

-  _Whose fault do you think that is, dumbass?_

 

Kainé stood up. The talk managed to calm her body’s desires down after the hug, and after witnessing Nier’s own excitement, so she looked down at him, trying to make it a warm look.

-  _If you make me say those things while you have a goddamn boner one more time, Nier, you can sure as hell expect I’ll do something about it. Or about shutting up those protesting, too loud lips of yours. What the heck do you think the shopkeepers think of me now, huh? Leading a boy in here and then him shouting like that several times. You dick._

Nier was almost pushed down into bashfulness and silence, but this was the old Kainé. He could deal with that, and he could understand that she always acted like this. So he spoke, anyway.

-  _Things are so sudden for me these days now, Kainé. I don’t know anything and I don’t know what to do. B…but it’s not like I feel bad that you can be like this now, or that you think of me as a person you want to see happy. I’m gonna do as you said. I’ll try to become strong. I don’t know how I want you to look at me yet, but I’ll help you make sure I can see that look when I know what it is. I’ll make you proud, even if you’ve been seen in a corset and erotic stockings._

-  _Huuuhh… freaking pervert. Bring it. Or else, I’ll grow horny from peaceful times too and try to eat folks up. Wonder if I’ll go for making you my snack, or making you jealous…_

-  _You said you’ll stop teasing me. So stop._

-  _Theeere we go. Standing up for yourself. I knew you had it in you. And I’m glad I could fucking spit out all that embarrassing crap from a while ago. Nier, will you tell me what you think of the dresses now?_

-  _As long as these dresses cover… something._

-  _They reach my knees._

-  _You don’t have to lie._

 

Kainé managed to snicker good-naturedly at Nier recovering some mood and self-confidence. When she returned, she asked if he was decent again, but actually showed up decent herself. The dress she wore was… pretty, light, and cheerful. Something Kainé never felt, and something she never tried to wear before. White mixed with light green  in something that covered her shoulders, most of her breasts, but shower off the nape of her neck and seemed good for frolicking on a warm day.

Nier blushed again, but it was his turn to state something openly and forcefully.

-  _You look cute._

-  _The fuck, dumbass. That’s like you’ve been rehearsing it._

-  _No, really. It… wouldn’t suit you at all, but if you wear this and laugh like you did in front of the shopkeepers… there’s no way you won’t be seen as cute._

-  _I’m taking this, then. Is it okay? We may not have the money for a weapon if there’s one you like._

-  _I have a decent weapon. Take the clothes._

-  _Huuh. You’re challenging something about your body, too, carrying a heavier sword than usual. But it’s not a bad weapon in terms of pure damage, so I’ll listen to you. Did you make your picks as well?_

-  _Yeah, sure. Are you sure you’ll be all right with my clothes being…_

-  _Yeah._

-  _Even the too big ones?_

-  _Yeah._

-  _Sorry I don’t have any mo…_

-  _You shared with me when you were the one with cash. Let’s go._

 

The shopkeeper announced the price.

-  _The total will be nine thousand three hundred._

-  _T…that’s not cheap. – Nier commented._

-  _I’m not a cheap girl. There you go._

-  _Thank you, dear customer!_

 

Emil was sure that along their travels they’ve spent more money than today occasionally, but it was impressive to see Kainé toss these money around like they didn’t mean much. She must’ve resolved to blow her savings today or simply had a lot saved.

-  _Kainé, just how much do you have?_

-  _I only took the equivalent of forty nine thousand with me, so we’re still safely over thirty thousand._

-  _Wow. I’m pretty sure you can actually buy almost any weapon with this…_

-  _Yeah, but the demand might’ve risen and the prices could be higher. Plus, we still need money for medicinal things. So we shouldn’t spend more than twenty to twenty five thousands for a weapon, even if it’s a really good one._

-  _Will you still have savings after this?_

-  _Hmph. It wasn’t even half of what I accumulated. I’ve had plenty of money when we managed to… finally cure Yonah, and I’ve earned a lot while spending little in the meantime. I think I was at 119 000 before today._

-  _You didn’t spend it on yourself?_

-  _I didn’t have you two, so there was no point in pampering myself or anyone else. It’s a little different now, and like I said, you’ve helped me out when you had money, Nier._

 

Nier nodded as they approached the weapon stand. It looked different than before. There were quite a lot of weapons, particularly several spears evidently imported from Façade. Kainé immediately looked towards the unique or high-priced weapons, however, and there were three that stood out at the outer end or beyond the range they decided upon.

-  _A spear for twenty two thousands, an axe for twenty two and a half, and an ornate… shortsword-like thing… for thirty three and a half thousand._

-  _Those are quite some prices… - Nier muttered under his nose. – But…_

-  _The axe’s large and heavy and would damage your mobility as a primary or backup weapon._

-  _The spear’s very light for this kind of weapon I think… but the length may be a problem with my current body type._

-  _So this place doesn’t have good enough weapons for you at this time, but the spear and the sword may be useful in the future. We’ll take the spear to stay in our price range. Emil, you lost your weapon, right? But even with four hands, you only fire two beams at once._

-  _I can fire three, but the energy output starts to tire me out. Four completely imbalances the magic and…_

-  _That’s perfect. Spears are simple to use and you’re not a weapon expert, but with four hands to go about you’ll be able to handle the length in a fight despite being shorter. And it’s light, so even if you need to fire three beams it won’t be difficult for you to keep it in one hand for a short while._

-  _You’ve thought this through in this short of a time?_

-  _I’ve hunted things before either of you had pubic hair, and was killing by the time you were hunting. Yeah, I know my weapons’ usefulness okay when I see them._

 

Kainé asked the shopkeeper to let her and Emil try out the spear. It’d be difficult for him to transport, but seemed like he could use it when fighting, although mostly in simple manners. Kainé judged the weapon as quite high-quality and effective, and as such, Emil was outfitted with a spear in place of the mace Popola’s spell evaporated.

The group asked for directions towards the shop for medicines and such, and Nier and Emil moved towards there immediately with Kainé paying for the spear and wrapping it up to not violate any don’t-have-your-weapon-drawn laws…

When she stopped in her tracks.

 

There she was. A pretty, bright, cheerful girl, completely different from so many years ago when her journey started, though Kainé wouldn’t know the exact details and depth of the change. She was taller than the last time Kainé saw her, and yet her features, especially when put next to her brothers’, still made her unmistakable for anyone else. Kainé didn’t spend enough time with this girl to really remember her that well or think of her that well, although they got along well enough based on the girls’ assumption of Kainé being her lone savior, and Kainé herself feeling that slightest bit calmer in her presence.

But, this girl was someone she really, really, really didn’t want to meet right now. In this group. Not now, not when she was starting to be able to really tell Nier some of her cravings and feelings, when she was trying to protect him from the truths of this world for the time being, when she wanted to try and show him a world outside the care for his sister despite not knowing much of the world at all herself, other than pain and misery. When she wanted to just take a chance and immerse herself into that feeling that she could’ve shared something special with him.

 

This girl being here, as kind, bright, and cheerful as she was, risked it all and more. Even risked exposing her and Emil’s lie. Most of all, Kainé’s jadedness told her pretty straightforwardly that when having an opportunity to choose between his sister and her, a freakshow of a hermaphrodite whom he only remembered for her worst - excessive hunger for battle, being cruel, and constant cussing, she lost from the start.

Hell, no matter how close Kainé and Nier have actually gotten on the way to the Shadowlords’ castle, Kainé’s jadedness would tell her in Nier’s heart, she was leagues below his sister.

[“Yonah… Yonah, why? What the hell are you doing here? What the hell are you doing here now!? WHY ARE YOU HERE NOW!? Can’t I just… to myself… have him to myself for a short while?! I’m starting to understand my feelings and they’re no longer feeling so painful and wrong, so why do you have to…”]

 

Her mind shut off, unable to process anything anymore, when this bright-haired, bright-eyed young girl who right now must’ve been physically only months younger than her nominally several years older brother, and actually got a bit taller than him, turned on her feet…

And noticed the weapons-bearing woman, in her usual clothes, almost the exact same get-up as she had when they first spoke in the Shadowlord’s castle, from across the alley.

Kainé’s mind rebooted, but not even she could understand or repeat the clusterbomb of vile language that she interchangeably shouted out in her mind, and mumbled and whispered under her nose.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're wondering what Kainé found to be so hilarious about Nier claiming he won't be growing much anymore (because of a memory lapse or because you're only familiar with Nier Gestalt), Nier grows from being somewhat significantly shorter than Kainé to being quite a bit taller than her through the five year timeskip. According to official databooks and such, between ages of 16 and 21 Nier has grown from 157 centimetres tall to 183 centimetres tall (Almost as tall as "father" Nier). At this age, this sort of growth spurt (26 centimetres - that's 10 inches for you American folks) does appear pretty ridiculous if you ask me.


	7. 2c - Unexpected Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kaine could've never expected Yonah would be in Seafront at the time, but what is she doing there? How will her presence affect Nier, or, more importantly for the duo, what Nier is going to think of their story? Can Yonah recall her brother if they meet face to face the first time it happens?

When their eyes met, recognition dawned on Yonah’s face, and her soft smile widened and brightened a bit. Kainé just tried to keep her expression neutral, but felt like she might just come off as cold.

Yonah didn’t waste any time shuffling along the ground at a pace quicker than she was used to normally in order to greet her ‘savior’, right in front of the person who sacrificed so much of their life to actually try and be her savior, and probably was the right person to turn to about that, anyway.

Emil only saw Yonah once in his life, momentarily, and when she was half the age she was right now, so it wasn’t a big surprise when he didn’t seem to recognize her or understand what was going on when she raised a hand and seemed to try approaching Kainé.

For Nier, it must’ve been a different story. Even if the woman who passed him was eight years older than this Nier remembered, the silvery-white hair and the blue-gray eyes were more than needed for him to get the feeling he knew her quite well. The way she moved, spoke, even her voice, now a little changed, seemed to affect Nier’s memories right away.

-   _Miss Kainé! Miss Kainé! It’s me! It’s me, Yonah_

[“Fuuuucckiiing A, girl. It’s not her fault, but I’m getting angry at her…”]

 

-   Yeah, yeah. I… know. – Kainé’s look at Nier and Emil as the froze in place and weren’t sure what to do could only be called apologetic. – It’s been a while. I’m surprised you recognized me. Why are you here, anyway? Buying fish?

 

[“Yeah, you have to buy fish now, because there’s no big brother to catch them for you.”]

-   _I actually live here now. The house I had back there in the village was too big for one person, haha…  Actually, the people in town have been restless after Popola and Devola just completely disappeared like that. For some reason, it got worse when you were gone. I felt like they stopped being nice to me, and that illness I’ve had… Well, even though it disappeared before I returned to the town, eventually people other than me seemed to start getting it. With Popola and Devola gone, I guess we’ve done something to affect the spreading of it. But most people became really rude, almost cruel… so I decided I didn’t want to put up with it anymore. There was something in this house that always made me feel sad and at a loss, too… And it looked like someone used it when I was gone, anyway. So, I sold the house and the stuff that other person left, and bought a smaller one here. It’s been about a year ago, I guess? I’ve been doing odd jobs since then… switching them often felt nostalgic for some reason, but I’m trying to find something steady now… How have you been?_

[“Fuck. You were a girl who lived alone with a big house. There was stuff left by someone else. You were the closest person to him. Of course it made you feel sad and at a loss. Shit, I get it, I really do. But don’t just stand there spewing out that nonsense and making him miserable now.”]

Kainé’s gaze focused on Nier now, trying to judge how he was holding up, to quietly comfort him somehow, to the point she didn’t notice Emil’s bashful slide over to the taller boy, with Emil wrapping his skeletal arm in the fabric of his own cloth, then gently squeezing Nier’s own hand through it, as if holding it to comfort him.

Either it seemed to help, or Nier managed to steel himself more properly than she had expected. His eyes weren’t really even tearing up, and slowly, he stepped over to Kainé and Yonah.

Of course. He wanted to hear better. He wanted to know how his sister was doing, even if right now they couldn’t be together.

-   _Miss Kainé?_

-   _Ah, uhhh… It’s good to hear you’re not doing so bad. Sorry about the villagers… I’m worried I might be part of the reason they turned on you, honestly. I left immediately after doing something bad instead of getting punished or standing up and explaining myself, and people probably remembered I was the one to bring you back, so you definitely got some backlash from that._

-   _I see. But it’s okay. I couldn’t complain after you saved me fro…_

-   _Let’s not talk about it. I’ll try to do something to make up to you for that mess-up later. Would you be okay with me giving you some extra money?_

-   _Y..yes. – Yonah turned as Nier suddenly cut in. – It… isn’t easy to try working for your own sake and living on your own at this age._

-   _Oh, are you two… Miss Kainé’s companions? I’m Yonah. It’s nice to meet you. I’m glad miss Kainé isn’t alone anymore, I was worried about that when she left the village._

-   _Yes, but while I’d like to help out, Kainé’s the only one with money right now… I’ll need to find a job too and…_

-   _Nier, we have a course of action for now, don’t we?  Well, Yonah, it is as you see. It’s been harsh and lonely for a while, but my companions are quite the kind people, aren’t they? So I’m fine now. But, how is your health? And what sort of stuff has been left by the other person at your home, if I may ask?_

 

It was Yonah’s turn to pause. Her eyes met Nier’s, and she seemed to stare at him questioningly for a couple of moments. Worry, anger, and hesitation rose in Kainé on this scene.

They’re the same age… For Yonah, Nier’s a stranger, but for him, she’s extremely important.

Yes. If something odd happens here, she’s going to be jealous.

 

Nier himself was closer to being infinitely hopeful at the sight of his sister’s face. She really was a lot older than the last time he recalled seeing her. He had to look up at her now, and she seemed almost midway in height between him and Kainé. Her face seemed full of curiosity at the moment of silence, then on her dawned a single moment of what looked like recognition… only for it to dissipate immediately.

-   _I’m sorry, for staring, Mister Nier, but though I think we might’ve met somewhere… I can’t remember when it was. Your face’s vaguely familiar. Maybe you’ve been in my village sometime in the past?_

Nier hang his head. He was looking for the right answer, but couldn’t find any at the moment. Kainé wasn’t lying. This person called herself Yonah, definitely looked like his sister, although quite a bit more adult, and was apparently healed from Black Scrawl, but she didn’t recognize him, or only did for a split second.

Kainé interrupted before the silence turned a little awkward.

-   _I’m sorry, Yonah, but as good as this guy is he’s gotten depressed lately. A shitty thing happened to him in this town, too, which I didn’t know, so he’s feeling especially down. Cut him a bit of slack for now and answer my questions, okay? I’m sure looking at a healthy, cheerful, pretty girl like you will help him recover a bit._

-   _K-Kainé, I mean, Miss Kainé, there’s no reason to compliment me like this…_

-   _Drop the ‘Miss’, too. Ain’t nobody calling me with any terms of respect or honorifics save for this little guy here_ – she motioned to Emil – _so you may as well call me just by my name._

-   _Uhhh, yes. Okay. I’m healthy. I mean, the illness I’ve had is completely gone, although I’ve been having some… odd… symptoms._

Nier’s expression was worried, so Kainé just fired the question straight up.

-   _What kind of symptoms?_

Yonah looked to the side, glanced at Nier momentarily, then back to Kainé.

-   _It’s a little embarrassing, so I probably shouldn’t be saying it in a place l…_

Kainé grabbed Yonah’s hand and pulled her away, causing Nier’s eyes to almost bulge out from shock.

-   _We’ll be back in a moment, goddamned girls being shy about the silliest of shit. If it’s related to your health, someone needs to know._

-   _Kainé, you’re pulling too hard… Ack…_

-   _Quiet, you. Here, there should be no ears in this alley. What’s this about? If Black Scrawl came back or you have any other serious illness, you should’ve told me earlier, you know!_

-   _But, Kainé, we haven’t even met in about three years…_

-   _Fuck, right, but still. When did this happen and how long has it been? What are the symptoms?_

-   _Well… If I was going to say for how long… I think it started becoming regular more or less a year ago. Before it only happened twice… two months after I’ve got rescued from the Shadowlord, and then almost exactly a year and a half later. Then, one year ago, it started happening somewhat regularly more or less every month… It’s a little embarrassing to talk about it, though, even with a woman older than me._

-   _Yonah, fuck, this is important. There’ll be a hell of a lot freaking out done if after all this crap with the Shadowlord you’re not all fine and well, so spit it out and tell me, all right?_

-   _All right. You see… every month, I get a little hot under the collar and start wanting to eat sweets and meat a little bit more. I think I also get a lot more worked up and embarrassed when looking at other people during that time, and a little bit after that, I get cramps, odd muscle contractions, and quite a bit of pain. My mood changes too and I’m easy to annoy and irritate, until this weird thing happens. I bleed from between my legs for a day or two, and people who are familiar with medicine and whatnot say that it’s weird that it happens regularly to me. I return to normal a couple days later but it restarts the next month. I don’t think that’s normal for a girl… Kainé? You look… worried? Is it that bad?_

 

[“The fuck. That’s this menstruation bullshit. Piece for piece. Only I get it half as often… but Emil said it’s normal to have it every month. I get it only half as often because I have a dick? W…wait, does this mean Yonah can get pregnant, too? We’ve found a second person already?”]

-   _It’s okay, Y-Yonah. It’s explainable and not dangerous to your health, though most people… wouldn’t understand what’s happening to your b-body._

[“Did I just fucking stutter for no reason at all? Why? Because if both of my genitals work now, that means if I and this girl fuck, we’ll be able to produce an actual human being? Or will we? Won’t it just be another Replicant or some shit? Yonah’s Gestalt is gone, so she’s technically back to being less-than-human too. I don’t where the FUCK my gestalt IS, so I’m probably the same. It’s just a trick. Emil was just being childish. There’s no way to make a human being anymore. Probably just some sick back-up plan by whatever oversaw this shitty project. The gestalts will turn into fucking crazy Shades and we’ll all die from goddamn Black Scrawl, so just let me make sure Nier is safe already! Fuck!”]

-   _You say it’s all right, but you seem out of it. Can you explain what’s going on?_

-   _How do I say this… Black Scrawl’s related to the evil book and shades, right? You might’ve heard that part from these girls in your village._

-   _I… think I heard it, but I don’t recall where…_

-   _Doesn’t matter. Long story short…_

[“How many more times do I have to make a shitty lie so those bratty kids don’t get broken inside from realizing they’re fucking empty shells of humans! Why do I feel like it’s required for that little chick here to stay all cheerful and innocent even with the world falling the fuck apart?”]

-   _It’s not very well determined, because there’s only so many people who ever managed to do it, but there is an aftermath of bodily changes in people with highly-developed Black Scrawl and in people who were once possessed. Ughh… your ability to have children is changed. Not gone, I mean, changed. There are periods where it’s easier to make a baby, and apparently times when it’s completely impossible. It happens in a monthly cycle and when you bleed from there it means the chance to make a baby is gone. I don’t know if it means you’ll run out of the ability to have them faster, sorry. But, in short term, it might actually make it easier to have one, so watch out when you find a boyfriend, all right?_

-   _A… boyfriend? B-bb-babies? Why would a body react in such a manner to…_

-   _How in the hell would I know? They’re probably trying to make women into baby factories to produce some sort of halfspawn mutants, but people who have these changes are too rare, shades are too fucked up, so nobody knows, okay?_

-   _Oh… It makes sense you’d only know a little. So, it’s not that bad, just a little weird?_

-   _Seems like it. But make sure you eat healthy and rest well. After all, at the end of these cycles you lose blood, so you have to build up your body a little bit. And don’t talk about this to other folks too much, either._

-   _Hah, so it’ll be like a secret between the two of us!_

-   _Yonah, there’s one more thing._

-   _Yeah?_

-   _You remember you’ve had a pen-pal once, right? Someone you sometimes sent each other letters with while you were ill?_

-   _Yes… but the letters suddenly stopped coming. It’s a bit of a mess in my memory, anyway…_

-   _This penpal’s home is not far from here. It’s a big mansion. If people here start getting Black Scrawl more often, or if Shade attacks will become frequent, I want you to either write a letter to that place or go there, with some people to keep you company if possible._

-   _Sure, but… how do you know that?_

-   _It’s complicated. Emil over there’s involved with that mansion. Yes, the little skeleton guy. He’s even nicer than Nier, so give him a break, too, or I’ll kick you._

Kainé reminded Yonah how to address her letter. This piece of information… it was strongly connected to Nier, but it was obvious, too. Just after they adventured in Façade and the Forest of Myth, they’ve met Emil for the first time. That’s where she lost memory of Nier, but it resonated with memories of Yonah in Kainé. Emil and Sebastian mentioned sending letters to her sometime, too.

-   _I’ll… sometimes send a person here or come here myself to check up on you, so make sure you tell them about things that worries you, all right? I know it’s a little weird for me to suddenly take interest, but things have changed somewhat._

-   _Is something wrong?_

-   _There’s bound to be some move on behalf of Shades sooner rather than later. There’s a lot of things we don’t understand about them, but I doubt defeating the Shadowlord made them subdued for long. There may be a new tough villain eventually, able to direct them somewhat, so we have to be mindful of any signs and careful. The world’s hardly a safe place._

-   _I understand._

-   _One more thing. You said your house seemed like it’s been in use between your kidnapping and return. What did the other person leave there?_

-   _Oh, just some food and medicines that seemed relatively fresh. And… odd weapons. I’ve sold them pretty early on, however…_

-   _Weapons again… I see. Well, we need to finish shopping, so say goodbye to the guys and go about your duties for now, as well. If we’re synchronized, we can talk a little bit later, or over the letters._

Kainé took steps to walk out of the small alley without looking at Yonah. Realizing Nier’s sister was now a properly fertile woman, and in a way no other woman except her in the world that she knew of was, made her a little self-conscious of the situation.

She kept acting and being dishonest. It was tiring her out. She wanted to just slowly build up courage to tell Nier everything about her feelings once he got a little more comfortable with her – and possibly grew up a bit, but instead she kept being entangled in a web of seemingly white lies.

Unlike a spider’s web, she could tell this one may not be particularly tough.

 

Nier immediately looked at her expectantly, but Kainé just gave him a slight smile, trying to comfort him over the probably fresh worry.

-   _K…Kainé asked me to stay in touch with her from now on, so I take it we’ll be seeing or hearing from each other sometimes! I’ll be in your care, mister Nier, mister Emil! My name is Yonah, and it was nice meeting you, but it seems both of us have things to do, so…_

-   _W-wait, Yo… miss Yonah. – Nier interrupted._

-   _Yeah?_

-   _It’s not easy to earn enough money to survive on your own at your… our age, so, make sure to not overdo it and ask us for help, okay? Don’t do anything rash or something that you’d regret later, and don’t accept help from any shady people!_

 

Yonah looked at Nier, surprised, then tossed a small glance at Emil and back to Kainé. It seemed like she found their image just a little bit ‘shady’, but that only made her smile.

-   _Sure. You really are caring, mi…_

-   _J-just call me Nier, okay?_

-   _You people are not very formal at all._

-   _Miss Yonah… Kainé is someone who helped you, right? And Nier is friends with Kainé, so you can drop the formalities with him, too. He could use a couple more friends. I’m sure he was anxious to meet you after we told him a bit about you. Uhm… we don’t know each other well, but I… I lived in that mansion nearby and occasionally wrote with some people from other villages. One of them was Yonah… I think it was you, wasn’t it? I’m sorry I stopped writing, but there’s been… complications. And I was depressed and sure you wouldn’t want to know someone like me anyway, but thanks to my friends, I think I can at least try being more friendly with other people, too._

-   _Ah… oh, I see! So both you and Kainé are people from before… people I’ve known earlier in my life. Such a coincidence that you’d be friends._

Kainé almost snarled to Yonah’s side. Excessive talking, and she hit right where she shouldn’t have. Emil tried to help, but they were all walking on pins around this issue. It seemed like Nier’s endurance to being faced with an amnesiac sister was finally going to crack, but he held on somehow.

-   _Very well. Thank you for your care, Kainé, Emil, Nier. I hope to see you or hear from you soon in this case. Expect a letter soon so you know whom to answer and write back! I’ll be going now._

With a smile, Yonah gave the group a light bow, since Kainé indicated they were in somewhat of a hurry. Kainé wanted to spill out all the vileness placed at the end of her tongue by how badly, from her perspective, this unexpected meeting went, and she couldn’t help frowning as Yonah passed, gazing to the side. This cold, aloof expression evaporated when she looked at Nier. She smiled at Emil holding his hand, and placed her own hand on his other shoulder.

-   _Are you okay? You’ve held up well, but if this has shaken you up too much, it’s okay to let it spill out, Nier. Nobody wants to be faced with a situation like this. We know that much._

-   _I’m… okay. I think part of me just wanted to think that what you’ve told me is a lie. Maybe I was so used to trying to find a cure for Yonah, I’d prefer for her to be ill but remember me… I don’t know what to think. In the end, I wasn’t even the one to help her, even though I can feel myself happy at how healthy she is, how much she’s grown… my little sister, taller than me. Can’t even believe it… and her smile’s so bright. But… everything I’ve done for her turned out to be meaningless in the en…_

Kainé wasn’t able to hold back anymore. She was angry at the world, angry at Yonah, angry at her inability to ever get to confess her feelings for the Nier she spent so much time with, angry at herself for forgetting him, and angry at this new Nier for being so difficult to protect from this crappy world, but at the same time being so utterly the same as the person she felt those powerful emotions for.

And just as before, in the same manner as before, there was one way in which Kainé could express her love for the stupid white-haired boy clearly.

She punched him in the gut in a short, swift jab, then slapped his face to divert his attention from the first pain.

-   _Are you a fucking idiot? You’ve unlocked the means to learn the truth about her illness. You’ve supported your little sister for years all on your own despite just being some poor orphaned kid in a town with a set of manipulative bitches at the head of it. You’ve saved people from being forever immersed in a sick dream, you’ve saved the prince of Façade, allowed him to be a king, and allowed them to find a small hole in their world of crazy fucking rules. And, quite fucking importantly for  *some* people here, we avenged my grandmother, and then you gave me a reason to keep on living. So don’t say some selfish shit and decide what you’ve done was ‘meaningless’ just because it might’ve not affected your little sister as well as you wanted it to! What, you save my ass, you tell me you’re my friend, and now you say it was meaningless? Get your head out of butt and look at the world around you. You have no idea how much you’ve changed it. If you say something like this again, Nier, I’m kicking your ass. If you’re still going to spit out depressed crap like this after all I’ve told you to make you feel better and more confident, better shut the fuck up._

 

Nier’s eyes were wide and he rubbed his cheek after getting slapped, and Emil’s hands were raised in surprise, with him taking a step back at Kainé’s outburst.

-   _Uhm, to sum it up… There are people to whom you are important and who cherish you as you are, Nier, and we still have hope of recovering your sister’s memory, so don’t get depressed yet, okay? You’re a very capable person and one purpose was already accomplished! This time you can take it a lot easier, too, probably!_

-   _Guys…_

-   _Now, if you need a fucking hug, I’ll give you one, but like I said. Anymore of this crap, and I’m seriously beating you up._

Nier nodded. He was about to toss out everything he gained from observing and following this new, stronger, kinder Kainé simply because he heard what he’s been already told. Both Nier and Kainé lightly crouched, and wrapped their arms around each other and Emil in a three-way hug.

-   _I guess there’ll be a change of plans. We’re still visiting Junk Heap, but we’ll try to consider ways of restoring Yonah’s memory as a higher priority. Also, from time to time, we should keep in touch with Yonah… mostly you, Nier. There’s a chance she’ll start remembering some things all on her own if you meet her frequently enough, but we have to make sure not to overdo it. There are some things we can consider doing, but none of them would be easy or have any guarantee of success, so don’t go being too enthusiastic and rushing in unprepared. Now, let’s go get the medicinal items and we’re back to Emil’s mansion for now._

-   _Uhh, Kainé… what’s this thing that was bothering Yonah, by the w…_

-   _It’s nothing. A womanly problem that barely affects her health. It just came at a surprising time so she got worried, and had no one to explain it to her. Don’t worry about it now._

-   _I… I see. Okay. I…_ _I’m going to put my trust in you two from now on. You know what’s been happening when I was gone, and you’ve been trying your best to help me, so I’ll trust you in helping me out when you think we’re ready. Thank you for everything up until now, and cheering me up, Kainé, Emil._

-   _It’s okay. You deserved that from the start, and done quite a bit to earn it, I believe. – Emil responded._

-   _And a punch in the gut, too._

-   _You’ve forgotten the last one, so you get this. Now, let’s get going. We’re starting to look weird. – Kainé cut the talk short._

 

Back at Emil’s mansion, Kainé resignedly put the money remaining back into her own things.

Well, virtually nothing remained, to be honest. Eighty in local currency, which meant they spend fourty eight thousand nine hundred and twenty in a single day. Granted, it made them well-prepared for a while, but it meant they’d eventually have to start earning money once more. Emil said his monetary situation was ‘complicated but stable’, so in worst case scenario they could live off of him, but Kainé knew both her and Nier would feel bad about it. She put sixteen thousand in a separate bag. That was the money she’d get Nier to take to Yonah the next time. Fourty nine thousand left in case they’d need to repeat that shopping spree plus five thousand atop of it as emergency funds.

And then, she’d be out.

She knew Emil was in the same room now without even looking.

-   _Kainé?_

-   _Yes?_

-   _What was the problem Yonah had? The one about her health?_

-   _It was just as I told Nier. A regular womanly problem._

-   _You seemed a little more conscious of her afterwards. I could also tell you were a little bewildered when you went out of there. So it was at least a little serious._

-   _It’s the same as mine. Yonah has periods now. Like an ‘original human’ would. Must be because the Shadowlord was trying to make her one during those five years. Even with her Gestalt gone, the effect might’ve persisted, although we can’t tell why or for how long._

Emil went quiet for a moment, then shyly suggested.

-   _Then… isn’t that good? You two could, theorethi…_

-   _No, Emil. No. If you suggest it again, I’m going to punch you like I did with Nier. Like I said before, there’s no hope for this world anyway. I don’t know yet if I want to explore the option of being a parent the way old humans would. But don’t you dare to suggest, to me, to someone who had that very thing pointed out as a sore spot for my whole life, to turn from a ‘woman’ into a ‘father of humanity’ or some bullshit like that. It’s not something I can accept now, so don’t even think about it._

-   _I see. I’m sorry. I think I got too excited about what happened back then._

-   _But you’re also forgetting when it happened, and where. And we don’t know *how*. This may be just a trick by the Shades, the Shadowlord, or another way to keep the replicant program going. It’s unlikely if Yonah also has it, but possible. However, for that reason, since Yonah has it, I decided to continue looking into that issue. Maybe it’ll be possible to create more Replicants fertile in the ‘old way’, if we can be. Or maybe there are special cases to find. But there’s one thing that we may have to do to learn more._

-   _You want to revisit the Shadowlord’s castle._

-   _Not really. I want to see the area around the castle. The last bastion of old human’s civilization around us as they changed into Gestalts… and now a festering pit full of Shades, most likely. So, we won’t be doing it *now*. We’ll try other options, and even when we conclude they won’t work, we’ll stay here for at least a year. Train, have fun, train more. But, if the world becomes too dangerous, Emil… if it turns out we have to try our best to just stay alive… We won’t be going there, Emil. Much less doing anything else to give it a hope of being saved. Not that two or three fertile people can do that._

-   _I understand. And we both just want to give the people we care about some happiness, so I’ll stop thinking about ways to fix what happened with the Gestalts at every step. Do you remember more about Nier now, Kainé?_

Kainé paused, hanging her head a bit.

-   _Not of the time period I hoped I would, but… yes. Hearing his story resonated with these buried shades of memories. I’m recalling everything we did up until the place he does, which was just a little bit before we met you for the first time._

-   _I see. Kainé, your feelings for Nier were different than for me, weren’t they? Even if you cared for us both._

-   _More mature and adult talks from kids. What sort of world is this?_

-   _You don’t have to tell me anything if you really need to keep it to yourself, Kainé. I was curious._

-   _I wasn’t exactly sure myself. Certainly, during the period of time I remember, our feelings were not *that* strong. But my first and strongest memory are right after what I thought was your death, Emil. I was so angry and at the edge of breaking down. He was losing it, too. I wanted to hit him for losing you, but take his mind off of things at the same time. So I hit him. And again. I forced him to his feet and unleashed all of my anger on him so he’d be able to keep going and finish what he started. But, midway through it, I realized why I was so angry. After spending my life *just* at angry, I had other feelings now, but had infinite doubts as to whether I could have them, or talk about them. I sure as hell didn’t have the honesty or self confidence to tell anyone of them, so I just punched them out. It was my primary way of communicating with people other than Tyrann for years, after all. Violence._

-   _So, you beat Nier up because you cared about me and him?_

-   _Yes, except that I stopped when the realization kicked in. You’re both precious to me, Emil. The Nier we traveled with… he ended up being precious to me in a different way. And I’m not sure if this Nier will be precious to me the way you are, or the way the ‘original’ was…_

-   _You deserve to be happy too, Kainé. And somehow, in the Shadowlord’s castle, you were given a chance, in a way we can’t understand yet. So take it. I… am not sure, but I think I might’ve felt the same way as you. You’re like a sister to me, but there’s a chance I thought of Nier as someone I wanted to try having a family with if we had a chance. Even though it’d be impossible for replicants or boys in the first place, that’s the feeling I might’ve had. Or he might’ve been a big brother to me. But I can’t remember, and now my body won’t differentiate between these loves as well as your does, Kainé. So if your feelings will end up being the same as those you’ve had when you think you lost me, I want you to go for it, for both of us. Because you know what your feelings were… because I treasure you both… because I think you could make Nier happy, and he could make you happy… and because there must be something very special between the two of you indeed, if you’re able to recall him far easier and better than me and Yonah._

Kainé turned on her feet and approached Emil, gently embracing the much shorter figure of the boy again.   

-   _Thank you for hearing it out. I need to… build up my courage. So that if I really fall in love again, I can express it in a manner other than punching people._

-   _It’s kind of cute to be doing that instead of just being straightforward, though._

-   _Maybe, but it leads nowhere. Emil?_

-   _Yes?_

-   _We’ll always be together with you. So if I decide I want to be a mother, and if I decide I want Nier to be the dad, and if he agrees, and if we find a way to make him fertile, too… Then there’s a chance you may become an uncle._

-   _It’s not like that’s a bad thing, right?_

-   _I wouldn’t know. Just thought I may as well suggest this could happen. Let’s go to sleep. There’s much to be done before we can think of this kind of stuff._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter of Nieringen I'll be uploading for about a 10 day period or so. Unfortunately I have some stuff to take care of, and unlike my other two stories Nieringen is being written completely on the go - I don't have significant materials just waiting to be formatted and uploaded or mildly changed and uploaded. Chapter 2d is the last I have completely written, and I'm still unsure if it's exactly the way how I want it to be since it involves a *significant* plot point which will look dumb if its retconned later.
> 
> In the meantime, I would like to sincerely request you readers offering me any words of feedback or encouragement, as well as voicing your own thoughts and ideas on the story (Particularly your opinion on whether you think I am managing to capture the characters well enough so far with the understanding that there were *some* changes compared to the game itself). While I do have a plotline for this story, up to and including one of two variant endings, it is hardly a thorough one like the Wicked Deity story has, for example. So, if you have thoughts, they may be helpful in polishing the plotline, although understandably there's no way I'd be able to or even want to include everything.
> 
> Thank you in advance for reading and any feedback offered, and I hope you're enjoying the story so far.


	8. 2d - The Heap's Fairy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nier, Kainé, and Emil visit one of the more dangerous places out of the ones they know well. How has it changed in the last years? What sort of mysteries can they uncover by finding new paths leading from the ones they've already seen? How long can Kainé hide the secret of the current world from her 'resurrected' friend, and her own feelings?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Similarly to my other stories, I decided to give Nieringen a final update for the Christmas period. Unlike the other two stories, this chapter contains important plot points, but nothing drastic compared to what we've already seen - in a way, it's actually fairly positive, though some of the hints present of what is going on may worry people who are particularly genre-savvy about the world or perceptive.
> 
> I do hope the spin in this chapter develops into a plot that's interesting to readers, and that everyone will enjoy this chapter. As always, feel free to comment - since this story's still underdeveloped feedback will be even more helpful than with the other two.
> 
> One way or another, I'd like to wish everyone a well-spent and warm time this Christmas. Whether you're a faithful and religious person celebrating something important, a spiritual person noticing that for many, this time is special, or just a regular human living from day to day thinking this is but tradition, I do hope you rest well and have a pleasant time with your families and friends. I also like to thank everyone for consistently reading my stories, especially the ones who left some sort of confirmation of enjoyment.

The supplies they’ve gathered were useful during the somewhat long travel throughout the land that came with avoiding Nier’s village to get to Junk Heap. Nier understood that Kainé and Emil had a motive for not getting close to that place, and could understand that the townsfolk weren’t always willing to accept the appearance that apparently came as a cost of obtaining his magic powers. Kainé remained adamant about not telling them anymore about just what caused her own reluctance to visit the village other than being honest in the fact she did something terrible, and keeping quiet after that.

Since Yonah no longer lived there, Nier was fine with these explanations, although there was still a chance he’d visit the town to check their weapon store. He also wanted to see how the villagers were doing and if the amount of people sick with Black Scrawl really increased at the pace Yonah and the two he traveled with suggested, but bringing that up didn’t seem to make Emil and Kainé any more willing to go near said village at all. And it wouldn’t be easy to go anywhere alone, either – Kainé insisted they only split if the situation demands it, as if the world has really gotten dangerous compared to when he traveled it alone.

Nier was getting used to the blade he received from Emil, but in his memory he was quite useful to the fighting style in which he also depended on assistance from Weiss. Some of the Sealed Verses Weiss employed in the manner of offensive spells were, time after time, incredibly effective and hacking away at things with swords, even with swords that were able to occasionally focus enough magical energy for an elementally enhanced attack, just wasn’t nearly as versatile all on its own.

It was then that Nier finally fully understood Kainé’s motivations for them sticking together whenever possible.

[“It’s pretty obvious… Of course, Emil’s here in case the swords and such are not enough to defeat a Shade or anything else that may cause problems. Since neither Kainé nor me can use magic anymore, we need Emil for this.”]

Thinking of Emil seemed to prompt him to speak up, somehow.

-  _Nier? You seem a little lost in thought._

-  _I was… just pondering on how odd magic worked in our world. It seems like there’s always a price to be paid or a deal attached. Stories of good, healthy and helpful wizards and such of old must all be lies, I guess._

-  _That’s true enough. It seems like regular people just can’t use magic without a huge price attached. I guess Shades already paid the price one way or another, so they can do it._

Kainé just shrugged.

-  _We’d probably have to learn about the original source, or sources, of magic to fully understand why it’s so complicated and a pain in the ass to use. Some things we’re probably better off not knowing._

 

While Emil was happy talking to Nier, even about things he couldn’t reveal everything he knew about, Kainé was seemingly getting quite used to the concept of not saying the entire truth or straight-out giving a white lie to close a risky topic. It worried him, and it seemed to worry Nier as well, though he didn’t exactly know she was lying.

-  _Well, it seems like you’ve been trying to understand magic for a while, Emil?_

-  _Yes. I was changed into a magic weapon because of some circumstances, so I’m trying to put certain ramifications on the abilities I’ve gotten. It took me a while to understand, but I think there are three concepts important to my own magic that I need to keep an eye on. Otherwise, bad things can happen._

-  _So that’s why you’re mindful of how you use your spells?_

-  _It’s more like that’s why I specifically make up these spells! My magic’s a little more universal, wild, and free-flowing than Weiss’ was. It’s like he had a lot of containers to use that he could pour magic in and out of, and I was tossed in a wild river. It took some time for me to get out, but there’s a lot of water. The issue is if I can’t make the containers for it, I can end up releasing the entire river, and then, bad things would happen._

-  _So you tried to create some specific ways in which you use that magic._

-  _More or less. That’s the first magic concept I’ve been keeping an eye on. Control. While it is easy to release it the way I am now, if I limit magic to the inside of a certain box, a certain line of thought, it’s a little less likely to give me problems on the other fields. That’s why I started making spells and trying to name them. Halboltua is one of those named spells!_

Kainé couldn’t help but smirk at that.

-  _I’ll let that one fly because it’s crazy obvious, but please don’t name anymore of those spells, all right, Emil? You seem to come up with those names in silly ways…_

-  _Kainé! That’s mean!_

-  _Ah, so, what are the other two concepts you need to watch out for?_

-  _You could say they’re the most complicated thing about my magic. It’s the amount of “resource” and the abundance of “backlash”, or “negative resonance”. Essentially, I think no magic is endless, although there’s some ways to recover your amount of energy._

-  _I noticed that when I channeled spells together with Weiss!_

-  _I see. I see. That makes sense._ – A little pause suggested that, for Emil, it made sense that Nier confirmed he was the one ‘using’ Weiss, but only Kainé would catch that subtle difference. - _For me, it’s a little different. I don’t tire quite as quickly when using my magic under certain restrictions, or even in general, but in return, spells I use have varying amount of effect on the “resource” I have left, and the “backlash” that builds up from it. Essentially… how to explain it…_

Kainé interrupted.

-  _Just say what happens. You can be honest on this one, there’s just no need for details._

Emil would smile if he didn’t have a perpetual, creepy half-grin forced onto his skeletal face all the time. It seems that Kainé understood the two latter parts of her magic from the memories they’ve had in common. The destruction of her hometown.

-  _The “backlash” or “negative resonance”  are the names I’ve given to the amount of chaotic interference in my overall magical energy I get from using magic. I developed “control” partially to control the flow out and loss of “resource”, but primarily to control the flow in of “backlash”. If my “resource” is still intact but partially drained, but the “backlash” has gotten too high, it drives the resource out of control. In the simplest manner of speaking, I lose control of my magic and it tends to just flow out and erupt in the most direct and destructive of ways. So I have to make sure to either continuously use spells that drain resource slowly and give little to no backlash, or just to have no resource left when the backlash gets really high. I prefer the first approach when possible, but I need practice in all manners of situations._

-  _So the price for not tiring out so quickly when using spells is the possibility that magic will rush out of you on their own?_

-  _Yes, that’s correct. I’m not sure if Weiss felt the same way when using magic, but if his worked the same, the “sealed verses” were possibly something created to completely eliminate “backlash”. There’s a possibility I am the only one that works that way, though._

 

 

 

Nier nodded.

-  _It’s pretty amazing that you can understand your own magic in such a manner. I just depended on Weiss…_

-  _Yeah. Emil’s been through a lot, but he’s amazing to be able to train himself in that way. It was a little different for us. We tried to make sure our magic grew stronger and whatnot in whatever limitations we were given. Emil has to make sure his magic’s extreme power doesn’t slip out of hand, but he still is able to experiment with it safely and do things like healing and whatnot._

-  _Mhm. We’ll be in your care when magic’s necessary, since it’s not always easy to fight the shades without it, but make sure to take care not only of us, but yourself as well. Okay, Emil?_

The skeletal boy nodded.

-  _I… originally hoped I’d be able to use magic to reverse or cure Black Scrawl, too, but no matter how much I train, practice, and alter it seems impossible. Not that I got a lot of field testing or anything._

 

Kainé and Nier just hung their heads after smiling comfortingly at him. Even after all this time, the fate of an ‘artificial human’ – a replicant - whose soul went insane or died was obvious and unavoidable.

That was, after all, part of the reason they originally lied to Nier. Chance was, Yonah’s Black Scrawl could return. Chance was, Nier could develop it. Most important of all, Kainé herself had absolutely no idea what her status in regards to the illness was. Being fused to a Shade seemed to just make Tyrann absorb whatever the illness constituted – assuming it wasn’t just that her Gestalt was sane up until the point they fought the Shadowlord - but back in the castle of the Shadowlord, something was happening that caused Black Scrawl to spill out all over her body at an incredible pace.

She couldn’t remember what Nier did then, or if he was even around her, or alive. She couldn’t remember anything about this situation at all until that point when Yonah asked if she was the one who saved her.

Supposedly, if more or less every Gestalt was going to relapse, she had to get Black Scrawl at some point. Her final moments of memory from that place suggested her Gestalt might’ve been relapsing or relapsed already. So she should be getting the sickness anytime now, but survived three and a half years on her own without the barest sign of it.

The thing she was afraid of the most right now was the possibility of her somehow becoming immune only to watch Yonah and Nier  waste away to it. She could handle it if it was the thing they shared, but she couldn’t handle surviving on her own without them again.

 

 

 

 

Which is why the combat on the way to the Junk Heap was somewhat of a babysitting activity.   
Nier was extremely talented and had a knack for improving himself directly through fighting greater than pretty much anyone else other than her when she was fused with Tyrann. Actually, he was better than her back then at it as well, but she guessed she might’ve been the only one to even be in the same league as him. She understood he didn’t waste the five years she was petrified and as such his skills improved greatly while she was, but this Nier was deprived of these benefits. So she needed to try and emulate stressful combat situations without actually allowing them to become dangerous.

More or less, rather than acting as his sword, she was like a net that incapacitated the enemies temporarily to allow Nier to deal with them in a relatively safe but growth-providing manner. That, or she was just a meatshield. Of course, he’d eventually pick up on that, but for now, it was just another little white lie tossed in for his own good. That’s what Kainé believed, anyway.

 

But when they did reach the Junk Heap, another problem came up. If Gideon was there, there was a thing he could be suspicious of, assuming he had any remnants of sanity left and was still alive.

-  _We should move more slowly now. Emil, make sure you have a hiding spot nearby at all times._

-  _Huh? Why?_

-  _Gideon. You remember, Nier? We’ve told you Jakob died. Well, Gideon wasn’t taking it well. Emil’s body when we last visited here was a little bit different than right now, so I presume there’s a risk he’ll think Emil is a robot now, or something. And Gideon hates robots. About as much as you’d hate people who want to hurt Yonah, I guess. There’s a risk he’s gone far enough to think Emil was a robot all along and want to kill him._

-  _So, he became this sort of a person…_

-  _Yeah. Nier, if Gideon doesn’t recognize you right away, don’t try to make him remember *anything*. If he seems unstable, we’re no longer going to ask him for help with our weapons. He developed the skills necessary to run the place on his own, but it’ll be dangerous to associate with him if he’s any worse than the last time. Still, I want to look through this place and check some things out for a variety of reasons, so we’ll have to go past Gideon, anyway._

 

 

 

Surely enough, Kainé’s fear came to pass as reality. She heard some slowly-repeated, loud noises and steel clanking, then something running towards him.

-  _I hear you, bastards! You’re going to die die die die die die die!_

It was sheer instinct by which Kainé pushed Nier further away from one of the passage, and then they both ducked towards separate large pieces of rock and scrapped metal moments after the loud noise repeated again, something hitting their new covers seconds after they managed to hide. Emil also managed to disappear before the person screaming found them.

 

Gideon was… different, to say the least. Rather than having a largely useless prostetic arm, it appeared he went for covering his entire body with various layers of interlocked metal and odd devices similar to the ones sometimes found in the Strange-things store in Façade. The “armor” was equipped with several weapons, it seemed, consisting of a repeating crossbow on one hand, a large, metallic tube placed on the shoulder above his previously prosthetic arm, and a harpoon attached to his hip below the same arm.

-  _Fuuuckers, you look like humans! Are you shades? Or are robots trying to trick me? Let me see your insides so I can judge! Though if you’re humans, I guess that’d make you die… if you’re robots I’ll have to work a little to make sure you’re dead after, huh…_

-  _The fuck, Gideon!? We’re humans! It’s me, Kainé!_

-  _Kaine? What kind of model designation is Kaine? They never name themselves that, it lacks a number! I bet your’re some weird robot with hidden legs! Yeah, hidden legs that come out and slice, slice and stab! Probably eight legs! Kaine sounds like a spider, it does!_

-  _KAINÉ, GIDEON! FUCKING KAINÉ!  I WAS HERE BEFORE! I destroyed the humongous goddamn robot that you said killed your brother or something! Can’t you even remember names and faces for shit?!_

-  _Huuuh? You destroyed him? Wouldn’t it be more fun to chop it to little pieces first, or something?_

-  _Gideon, I swear, if you don’t start making fucking sense right now and thinking, you’re going to be sorry._

Indeed. No matter how stubborn Kainé was, she could hear the gestalt child with the robot back then, thanks to Tyrann. And she had to do her best to drown out that voice while they destroyed the robot and shade both. So the memory of it was definitely making her less than patient in regards to his crap.

-  _Well, there was some chick or the other who was here and downed the robot before I started flattening him out into small pieces, and she had a name like Kawhatever, so I guess I can believe ya… Eeee hee hee._

-  _We’re here to check this place for some stuff and weapons. And if you’re not too crazy to work like before, we wanted to see if you could continue upgrading those weapons._

-  _I’m kinda busy slaying robots, you know? There’s also been more Shades! Shades and robots! I bet the robots were pushed so far by me they all are allied with their own crappy Shades now! I’m just so great they had to! Eeee hee hee._

-  _Shit, Gideon, are you going to let us go our own way, or will you keep trying to kill us while talking about butchering goddamn robots?_

-  _Well, as long as you kill some… I guess I can return to my base and stick there, snipe any shitty machine that comes around… But you only have today, you hear me? And if I get any sort of hunch that you’re being friendly with these goddamn things or if you turn out to be a robot, you’re becoming scrap. But if you bring me enough robot heads and materials, sure, I’ll upgrade your weapons. So you can kill more robots!_

 

Gideon seemed to change his overall direction and move out of the spot to whatever sniping position he deemed was his ‘base’. Thankfully, it seemed he wasn’t cutting the way they came in – or most of their ways out, for that matter.

-  _Well, he’s unhinged and unstable, all right. Emil, get out of here. We don’t want him seeing you with us and going crazy. I want you to hide and check where his base was, and stay on guard._

-  _But, Kainé, fighting robots with just weapons is not going to be easy, and if there are more Shades here it can be doubly so!_

-  _We need to explore this mountain and be extra careful about it. But, right now is the only time when you can still escape without Gideon seeing you, and take a position to defend us just in case._

-  _Defend?_

-  _Yeah. Gideon’s fucking mad. If he tries attacking us from his silly little base, you’re the only one who can blow him to hell._

-  _Kainé, if it seems you’re going to have trouble, I need you to promise me you and Nier will evacuate out of there even if it means not exploring the Junk Heap as much as you’d like._

-  _It’s not just the heap. It’s clear Gideon’s been uncovering more and more territory around the entire place, so there’s more to it now than in the past._

-  _But exploring that area’s risky._

-  _Yes. We need to be careful, but there can be a lot gained from that place. Let’s start with the old areas, though. I have a hunch._

 

 

 

Surely enough, the place was a lot emptier than before when it came to the “old areas”. Shades popped up here and there, but the robotic opponents weren’t quite as persistent, so overall it balanced itself out.

Nier felt a little bad about the situation. Without Emil’s help, Kainé was forced to go all out in terms of sheer power of her attacks to finish off the tougher opponents. This caused Nier to feel a little down in terms of how hard it was to keep up with her, and another dosage of bad when he realized it was also tiring Kainé out. The final hit to his self-confidence was that his companion seemed to know the area better than him now.

Thinking hard on it, he begun coming to conclusions about this situation that were a little surprising, and depressing. He wondered if he should hold them in or share them with Kainé. She’d probably bully him about it for a short while and then somehow make the situation motivating for him.

 

Eventually, they came to an area he couldn’t recall, with a large hole in the ground. Kainé seemed to have seen it before.

-  _There’s prooobably some way to explore what’s below, but it’s a long fall and we have no idea if it’d be worth it. I’d rather check through Gideon’s new paths. After we’re done with him, we’ll check that area through one of his paths, regardless of whether we’ll have to kill him for it or not._

-  _You… don’t particularly seem to care on whether he lives or dies…_

-  _Wrong. I’d prefer if he was alive and healthy. But if it’s him or us, I’m always choosing us, Nier. Let’s see…_

Kainé continued to search through the room for something.

-  _Sit down, Nier. You have an opportunity to rest. It’s going to be a huge pain going through the rest of the mountain with just the two of us._

-  _But you’re still looking for something…_

-  _I have a hunch, is all._

-  _I think I understand something now, Kainé._

-  _What’s this about?_

-  _You’ve grown… strong. Very strong. And you’re capable and know many places around this area. So, when me and Emil tag along, you have a use for him, but you’re spending time protecting me and trying to judge whether I’m making progress. You’re taking care of me even if you’re trying not to show it._

-  _Well, fucking hell. It’s normal to protect your friends. You’re pulling your own weight anyway._

-  _Not true. When Emil was around, you were pulling your punches and waiting for me to get accustomed to fighting and whatnot. But when the enemies are the kind that is tough to damage, and Emil’s not around, you’re hitting so hard I’m surprised the earth isn’t shaking… or…  something._

-  _So? You’ve done the same thing when fighting me and then fighting that shade with the sword and a hand for a dick. Suddenly your strikes were much, much better than before. I guess I told you to hold back a little when we sparred, but the thing is, when your life depends on it you fight a lot differently than when you can take it easy._

-  _That’s not the point I’m making. You’re still protecting me. It’s fine if you don’t admit it, but it helped me understand something… When we met Yonah, she seemed quite cheerful. Not yet exactly happy, but there was something more joyful about her than in the past._

-  _That’s because she’s healthy._

-  _It’s not just that. It’s because she can do something now. For herself and whomever she finds important. She can go around and do things with her own strength. Back when she was sick, I tried to do everything for her… Protect her from everything. I think for most people it can sometimes be hurtful to do that. It’s nice to know you have my back, but… it also hurts to be the one who can only do the least this time around. It can hurt to be the one protected, I guess._

Kainé gave him a small smile.

-  _Eh, men._

-  _W..what?_

-  _Men can be smart, but even those that are often only see one side of the issue. Women see another, and they often can complete one another’s viewpoint on it. Of course, that’s messy and not always true, but you’re seeing what you’re seeing only as a man would, with your pride and everything._

-  _So a woman could see it differently?_

-  _Yes and no. You’re partially right. People have ambitions, and they often want to do something through themselves and their own strength. But a man protects a woman while she nourishes their happiness. It’s been like this for the regular dumb run-off-the-mill couple for many years, so it’s ingrained in most of us. There’s a charm in watching the man’s back as he strives for your sake, his woman’s sake, for pretty much any woman… That’s into men, that is. The difference is, some of them will want to watch that charming back forever, and some of them will want to get up, struggle, improve, fight, until they can instead walk hand in hand with that person after watching their back. That’s how women are. It’s probably about as dumb as the usual male pride is for the women that follow it. Tch, whatever. That’s too deep and sappy for me to be dwelling on it._

-  _Any woman?_

-  _More or less. Might be one here or there that hates the fact._

-  _So, even Kainé?_

Kainé turned around and stomped her long leg right in front of the sitting Nier.

-  _Yes, damn it, even me. Except maybe I’m the type to try and outrun the guy so he can get a look at my ass and be the one chasing instead, only to get scared by what he finds at the end of the day. Fuck, brat. Yes, I was defending you and trying to mold the situation in a fight when possible, but I also didn’t lie when I said you’re already quite strong, and when I said you’ll be getting stronger and growing. If you were just dead weight to us, I’d simply have you stay back at Emil’s mansion or in a town or something and confine you to a tower like you’re some pretty fucking princess. I ain’t doing that, so just let me do my own job, okay?_

-  _I will. And I won’t get depressed about it anymore if you put it like that. If I don’t need to or can’t do things for Yonah’s sake anymore, at least I’ll chase you until we can walk hand in hand again, Kainé. So I don’t end up being the girl._

-  _That’s a pretty shitty thing to say about women after I tried so hard to put it into a metaphor, brat._

 

 

Despite the harsher words, Kainé’s expression softened after Nier’s declaration. It just seemed so… like him. To the point, direct, and full of some ridiculous sense of camaraderie and chivalry. All that was missing compared to what ‘her’ Nier would likely say was a line about butchering Shades, but that powerful hatred came later.

Nier was surprised at Kainé suddenly putting her leg beside him. He also found it difficult not to look at it with how much of it was uncovered.

-  _This box you’re sitting at is pretty heavy, ain’t it, Nier?_

-  _I think so._

 

Despite her focus on finding what she felt was here, Kainé wasn’t blind, nor was she able to ignore Nier himself. His reactions and gaze were included, and as such she still struggled with how she should react when he seemed to be positively affected by watching her body in any manner. It was simpler in a one on one situation to just go with her original feelings, but Nier was still a young and impressionable person. No matter how durable his mind was, while she wanted to enjoy being seen as a woman, enjoy tantalizing him a little, she also understood what sexual frustration was. What denial of instincts could lead to. Nier had a certain sense of shame associated with sexuality, apparently due to a past stain, past trauma. He was strong enough to not let that stain really mark him for life, but she still wanted to be careful about him not closing himself… or not going too quickly with following what he wanted in an effort to forget the bad experiences of the past. Young impressionable minds were young impressionable minds.

But, Kainé promised herself to no longer lead a life of self-denial. So she decided to gently take advantage of his apparent state.

Placing a hand at his chin, she gently pulled him along as she leaned in, so he’d look at her face.

-  _What’re you looking at? I uncover my legs plenty. We’re interested in what’s in that box._

-  _Sorry. I’ve been zoning out a lot lately._

-  _I know I’m too blame for not letting you burn it out for fighting as much, but if you lose too much focus watching me, it’s going to be a problem._

-  _No, that’s not true. Kainé is Kainé. I’m used to it… I think…_

-  _So why are you still sitting?_

-  _Our heads will bump if I get up._

Kainé snickered and let the boy go as he slowly raised from his seated position, and she tore off the top of the box with her blades.

-  _We’ll get back to this later, I guess… but what have you been looking for, Kainé?_

-  _Weapons. Or maybe it’s just a weapon. The weapon? Whatever. There’s one here, but…_

She recalled there was an association between the Junk Heap and weapons other than just Jakob and Gideon doing some weapon upgrading. Like they once found something powerful here, and left with it. But for some reason, it didn’t feel like the spear with additional axelike blades on the sides was the weapon she was thinking of.

So her hunch and her theory couldn’t be confirmed as of yet.

-  _It’s a spear… is this what you were looking for, Kainé?_

She picked it up. It was heavy, and the swinging and thrusting left her with something to be desired. It was lacking. It wasn’t what they sought.

-  _Not really. This thing’s weaker than what we bought for Emil, I think. Heavier, too._

-  _Why do you think it was in that box?_

-  _Sometimes, people come here and get killed by Shades. I guess the robots might’ve collected it for being a piece of metal. Or maybe it’s a random coincidence, or some sort of mechanism pulling things along the place. I don’t know. I now it’s likely there’s a strong weapon somewhere in Junk Heap, because there are stories about a powerful one being lost here and even Gideon seems to have mentioned something about a weapon the couple of times we were here… But if it’s that spear, that’d be really underwhelming. Let’s take it anyway. We can sell it or something, and we could both try doing some practice with a spear if we find something weaker along the way. Though, right now you’d be better off using the one Emil has… Never mind. Time to go where we haven’t been in before, and check these new passages Gideon unlocked._

 

 

It was indeed a mountain full of places they have not been in yet, but they couldn’t know that while they fought through these areas, they were being watched by a force different from the Shades or the Robots.

This being carefully observed Kainé’s impressive might and fighting ability, but what it truly focused at was something else. Not a person, in any case.

Moving quickly through the shadows and on levels where their gaze wouldn’t find her quite so quickly, this thing listened to their talks about exploring this place, and carefully tried to collect the names of the two as it followed. Before long, it could understand. They were here to search for something, too. A relic of the old technology, similarly to the being’s own purposes. And their names were Kainé…

And Nier. The being cursed its limited ability to remember if those were the names, but reasoned the duo could certainly be helpful to her, and it certainly seemed like they had one of the things that this being was searching for.

Moving through a side corridor, it decided to outpace them and find a way to lead them to the location where everything could be explained.

 

 

 

Kainé got the feeling they were being watched, even stalked, for a short while, but couldn’t explain it in any other way than just intuition. There were no sounds, no shadows, and nothing to go by to explain her feeling of being trailed, and eventually, it passed. After coming across two sections being collapsed and swearing she heard something before coming to another path that apparently has been sealed off, she decided it was pretty possible someone was leading them along.

Nier was the one who decided to speak up.

-  _I know Gideon didn’t really have to clean all the passageways, but don’t you feel like it is odd how we’re coming up to some of them being inaccessible and others quite the opposite?_

-  _The collapse of that previous passage seemed to be something caused recently.  Something hopes to trap us in here, or lead us somewhere rather specific._

-  _Let’s slow down… and keep a small distance. One of us should watch the back constantly to see to it that we won’t get stuck._

-  _Yeah._

 

 

With only one sudden attack of small Shades to interrupt them, it seemed like the purpose of whatever force was following them was to lead them somewhere, rather than trap them or harm them.

Surely enough, there it was. A large chamber of rock, a cave with metallic supports suggesting something once took place here, a mining effort, perhaps. And something was floating over the largely ravaged carcasses of metallic beings, robots similar to, but also different, than those seen all over the old part of Junk Heap.

It was a quadrilateral shape, about a third time again as long as it was wide, with a thickness to it at an angle that suggested some relatively significant inner contents.

Both Kainé and Nier’s eyes got a little bit wider at the realization just what was it that they were seeing, and possibly what was it that lead them here.

A floating book. In front of them was a floating book.

-  _W… Weiss?_

 

The book flipped over in the air, directing itself towards the duo, with Kainé immediately drawing her weapons, knowing that there was only one book in the world that ever used its weird, floating ability to actually help them accomplish anything, and that book was long gone.

-  _No, it is not! Watch out, Nier! This thing’s been trying to hunt us! That’s not Weiss!_

The charge of the swordswoman at the book caused it to flip backwards and try bouncing away from the doom of arcane tomes in the shape of a woman, but rather than try to attack, it instead spoke out.

-  _No! No, no, I wasn’t going to harm you! Waaaait! Waitwaitwaitwait!_

-  _Fuck waiting, I’ll read what you need to tell me from your pages once I rip them all out one by one!_

 

The slam of Kainé’s sword only barely missed the book’s surface, leaving a long impression of her spiked blade in the nearby piece of rock.

-  _Kainé, stop! If we get too rough in this place, we could collapse the supports! And the book’s not attacking us, either!_

-  _Out of three arcane tomes I’ve seen, one was a dumbass and the other two were trying to kill me! I’m not taking my chances here, Nier!_

 

 

Suffice to say, this situation wasn’t exactly what the book hoped would happen.  
One thing was confirmed, these two knew of Grimoires, and if they had connection to Grimoire Weiss, there was a high possibility they were replicants of someone important enough to the Shadowlord to want said replicants strengthened and preserved. So her initial suspicion might’ve not been far off. The sensation from the two, however, was odd. The young boy felt a little bit different from the usual Replicant, although it didn’t seem great enough a difference for her to attach any significance to it.

It was different for the woman. Not just in terms of sheer power, something about this “Kainé” seemed almost unique. She never came into contact with a Replicant that gave her this kind of feeling, in terms of sensing their power or their general ‘aura’, whether before she was laid down to sleep or in the time since her awakening.

One thing was certain in regards to power, however. This being had what it took to survive this place, and also possibly the two of them had what it takes to defeat a Grimoire fighting seriously against them. So she had to avoid that.

-  _I am Grimoire Turchesi! I do not wish you harm! I wish to negotiate! I only directed your movements here to ensure we’d meet where I could present my request!_

-  _What sort of fucking request can a book with such a crappy name and sing-songy bitchy voice have from angered poor folk like us, huh?_

-  _Uhhmmm… I wanted to learn something about you two first in terms of who you were. Is it possible that the two of you are the ones responsible for the failure of Grimoire Noir and the G…_

-  _Book, you’re in no position to ask questions, and if you ask us about this bullshit again, I’m going to take a wild guess that you were in league with the other two books, and find the nearest furnace so you can call it your home._

-  _I… it is difficult to negotiate with you after all. Boy, does this woman carry some sort of a grudge against arcane tomes?_

-  _Well, Weiss called her a lot of mean nicknames, and it seems the other two were only worse, so I presume that’s true…_

-  _Just say what’s this about so I know if I have to slice you up._

-  _Okay, okay. First, let me assure you my purpose is vastly different from that of Grimoire Noir, regardless of how we were created. I don’t follow his scheme anymore, especially now that he’s failed. I have something vastly different in mind, something related to researching an existence important to this world’s history._

-  _And we should trust you why?_

-  _Because now I will ask why you need to be in this place and try to find a way to join our interests together. Also, because one of the things I came here to do in regards to my research is protected by a powerful Shade. And if it tries to stop either of us, I’m going to help you in taking it down._

-  _We’re here to gather certain things I thought could be found here, and check if the technology out here can help us with a couple of things we wanted done._

 

Nier decided to narrow it down a little.

-  _We’re seeking a way to prevent or heal a certain illness, and a way to possibly recover memories for people who have lost them._

Now that this was out of the bag, Kainé decided to finish.

-  _That, plus a certain biological quirk. Nothing a book would understand._

-  _I see. I see. This is quite a serendipitous encounter, then._

-  _Serendiwhat?_  - Kainé asked, surprised.

-  _It’s lucky for us to meet here. My purpose is twofold. While this place is originally little more than a facility meant to mine and produce, it does possess a significant amount of information at the spot defended by the Shade I mentioned. However, because of the passage of time, this data is accessible only in two ways._

-  _These being?_

-  _Through the defending Shade itself, and I am sorry to say this way is unlikely to work out for you two… And through mimicking the power sources that originally allowed this information to be accessed. I know the way to do that, but I may be unable to do it on my own._

 

Kainé finally lowered her weapons.

-  _So, you’re proposing an alliance in which we do what needs to be done, beat the Shade, access the information, and go our merry ways?_

-  _I am ashamed to admit that I must request the better part of the deal. This area was originally unlocked by a person who seems to treat this place as their home and hunting ground at once. To progress in my quest, the thing that we’re going to use to access the database is vital for more than just this single area, and it is a robot. So, in order for me to escape, I will require your aid in distracting this person until I can take this robot out of his reach._

-  _Well, at least you’re fucking honest. What’s in it for us?_

-  _I will, together with this robot, aid you in storming the information center, lend you the robot’s power for as long as you require at said database, and answer any questions you may have that the knowledge contained in an arcane tome like myself could reveal._

-  _You really are getting the better end of the deal here._

-  _Indeed, but I believe my efforts may positively affect the entire world._

-  _Define “positively”._ – Kainé asked skeptically.

-  _I am afraid I cannot truly do so without mentioning topics you find… distasteful to speak of, miss Kainé. But as I said, my purpose is very much different from the purpose of Grimoire Noir now. I do not wish to follow his designs, nor those of his masters, present or past. As a matter of fact, my wish is to sway some of the loyalists of Noir’s faction to my own cause, as it would aid me greatly._

-  _So your plan will not benefit the sentient Shades. What about the other side of the coin? You know what I’m talking about, so no weird detours about Noir’s “Projects”, please._

 

The “please” was quite meaningful in the way Kainé crossed her swords when she said it. Turchesi understood. This woman knew the truth, but deemed it too cruel for the boy supporting her to learn yet, most likely. She must’ve been wrong in thinking he was involved in ultimately taking down Noir and the Shadowlord, but there was a chance she was. If the rumors she heard were true, that would also explain the presence of what she sought with those two.

-  _I cannot guarantee nothing, but… My hope is that it will allow humanity to continue in a manner without the resolution Noir envisioned. You see, I am clinging to a fool’s hope, somewhat in the same manner as the most well-informed of human’s might be, but my fool’s hope is something more brilliant and powerful than anything this world has seen, judging from what I know. But, I will only be able to continue on that path with the aid of the thing I intended to obtain here. And I do believe I will be able to drop that path if it turns out pointless._

-  _I see. Very well. If you’re so knowledgeable about what we can do to get information from this place, tell us._

-  _We’re going to need robot parts. Somewhat specific ones. You’ve been damaging robots on your way here, but many of their parts would still be intact. One we gather the right ones, we’ll be able to awaken one of the robots here. This one._

 

Grimoire Turchesi flew over and almost rested on one of the robotic beings. It was almost humanoid, except for the presence of several circular shapes sticking out – two over its hips, one over each shoulder and through its “stomach”. The construct was also covered with what Kaine recognized as magic words similar to those Weiss sometimes collected,, meaning it might’ve been more than a simple robot.

-  _This is one of the few maso-electric units created during the…Ah uhhh… Well, it’s a long historical lesson related to the times Shades were just beginning to form._

 

Kaine’s increasingly intensestare silenced Turchesi in time before she could say anything about “Old humanity” or “Project Gestalt”.

-  _It is a construct of both old energies and magic, but primarily the first one. However, its magic is very specific. It allows it to tap in and generate energy, and then turn on and operate, almost with any imaginable, relatively well-preserved device of ancient technologies. It’s an existence practically unique in this world, and vital to my plan, particularly this part of it. It is possible it’d be useful to you two as well in the future, though I cannot be certain if we’ll continue to ally over our respective paths._

-  _So it can turn on shit like other inactive robots and such, yes?_

-  _Amongst other things. Its versatility and power generation are amazing. It just needs several minor repairs and a small twinge of magic to recover. I’ll produce the latter, and I need the two of you to introduce the former. With it, we’ll be able to read through this place’s ancient databases, and even recreate them in form similar to books or pergamins.  The robot carries the unfortunately long designation of Glow-7A-WRM._

Nier finally decided to speak up.

-  _So, with the help of this robot, once we defeat the shade, we can use any information this place has. But will it have  knowledge of anything about sicknesses, or restoring memory?_

-  _I will be honest. This database can’t serve as anything but a gateway on your journey. Most of the information contained here won’t be useful to you, with exceptions. This place is sure to have information required to decipher ancient alphabets, which will be of use to you on your quests for information. It also will possess the maps and pinpoint the localizations of places where magic and various types of knowledge were researched in the past, so you’ll be able to learn of any of such places in the conceivable vicinity of this place. Whether it’s military research or just highly successful and well-funded academy of knowledge, this place can point you to it. Whether it’s about sicknesses, biological quirks, or memory alteration, if a center of research into it had a high enough status, and by extension was likely to succeed at its purposes, this place knows of its location. If the illness you’re researching threatened the military, it may be included, too._

-  _Why does it have these sorts of information?_

-  _This place was a center for military forces, and forces that were supposed to preserve ‘order’ while this center was in use. The entire ‘Junk Heap’ area is like that. They monitored the progress of other places that had result and money, especially if they could be used for purposes of strengthening soldiers and whatnot, or if the research itself was shady or funded from unknown sources._

 

Kainé smirked at that.

-  _So they were paranoid and wanted control._

-  _Precisely. So they gathered more than they needed for just their own functioning._

-  _Including the information you’re after._

-  _Yes. That information had to be useful to the military._

-  _Kainé, let’s try it._

-  _What do we do if the book’s lying, and turns on us when we’re fighting the Shade?_

-  _We’ll just damage her robot again and escape._

-  _What if the robot’s a dangerous machine of destruction that can pound us into the ground?_

-  _Kainé, I know you don’t particularly have good experiences with arcane tomes, but this one’s not manipulating us. She doesn’t tell us what we want to hear. She seems upfront. Uhh… I’m sorry, I went by your voice. We… could say you’re a female Grimoire, right?_

-  _That is correct. I identify myself with the feminine gender. My voice is right for it, too._

-  _Fuck. You’re right, Nier. But if you make as much as a one wrong move, Chesi, you’re regretting it._

-  _Uhm, the name’s Grimoire Turchesi…_

Nier snickered.

-  _Saying that will just provoke her to keep using the nickname._

-  _Fine. Let’s gather the scraps of robots and try to awaken Glowie, then. Fuck me. No matter what we do, it’s like flying books just have to be involved somehow._

 

 

 

They proceeded to carry around trashed parts of various robots at the Grimoire’s direction, which, due to the amount of time required to gather all of it, prompted Nier to ask the one question that was on his mind ever since they met the book.

-  _Kainé?_

-  _Yeah?_

-  _Earlier, you mentioned you’ve met two books other than Weiss before this one. But, from what Devola and Popola were talking about, I expected there to only be Weiss and Noir… Do you know anything about those other books?_

-  _Not really.We…  I fought one soon after I originally met Emil. It was powerful, but didn’t talk. Noir spoke only things that sounded like occultist bullshit, and you know what Weiss was like._

-  _So, you don’t really know what’s the purpose of those other books is?_

 

Kainé shrugged. This time, she didn’t have to lie.

-  _How would I? All I know is that they seem relatively simply affected by Shades compared to their ability to be reasoned with. Even Weiss had a moment of being hypnotized like a little bitch. That’s why I was reluctant to trust this flying piece of paper._

-  _I see. Then, Grimoire Turchesi, was it? Could you explain something about how you Grimoires work? How you were created, and what for?_

-  _That’s not quite so simple, young man. I don’t think any Grimoire remembers being created, and after we’re awakened from being put to slumber our memories are generally not at full capacity for a while. Our powers tend to seal themselves away to varied extents, too…_

-  _We experienced something like this with Weiss, yes…_

-  _Well, each Grimoire tends to have a certain amount of magical options to itself. I believe Grimoire Weiss and Grimoire Noir were potentially the strongest in that regard. If you ask why we were created, the lady is, regrettably, correct. One of our earliest jobs was support of Pr… of the current Shades’ effort to transcend flesh and mortality, so to speak. Through us, the sentient Shades, as you’d know them, slowly developed ways of using their new forms to use magic of their own, and then stabilize themselves as the existences you know today._

-  _Then you’re just a tool of our enemy._

-  _Yes, and no. We still possess some will and ability to learn of our own. This is why I’ve decided to put my faith in a certain important existence. An event lately caused some huge dissonance in the ranks of the still self-aware and rational Shades and creatures and artifacts involved with them,  but I doubt you’d know of the cause._

 

Turchesi was measuring Kaine’s reaction to learn more of the powerful Replicant. Her thoughts turned to analyzing the situation, and the woman’s attitude.

[“It’s interesting. It looks like she knows of their true name and destiny, but she persists in refusing the boy to learn about things that she knows. To the point of threatening me if I reveal too much. Not only that… These two were travelling with Grimoire Weiss for a while, so there is indeed a chance one of them knows why Project Gestalt could not be resolved, but it can’t be the boy if he knows nothing. Is she somehow involved in the peril of Gestalts? Could she be the reason why the chief source of stabilizing Maso is now gone? I know too little. I’ve been asleep for too long, and there were Replicants capable of reaching this kind of level in the meantime. Well, of course, they’re partially involved with that person indirectly…”]

 

Nier’s last words seemed a little sad and reluctant.

-  _Did you… know Weiss well?_

-  _Oh, no, I regret to say that between us Grimoires, there wasn’t that much sense of a caramaderie, to the point of me not being entirely certain how many of us exist. To make it worse, not all of us were that good with communication, and our powers, while related, seemed to come in a couple of varieties that sometimes were less than compatible, so we’ve tended to be designated away from one another. I’m sorry, I take it you took a shine to Grimoire Weiss._

-  _It was a stupid book, but you sort of get used to what’s yours, right? Weiss was that type I guess, we could call him ‘our dumbass’, at some point._

 

[“And yet he was still a book meant to spell the doom of people who developed mind and heart without a soul. Was Tyrann “our  Shade”? Is Emil “Our Magical Weapon”? What even am I now, for that matter? Without Nier and Emil beside me, and without Tyrann inside of me, was I just an empty shell with exceptional ability to cause damage for more than three years?”]

 

They gathered all the parts necessary in Turchesi’s opinion, so it was time to start putting them in place of not working ones into Glow-7A-WRM, at Turchesi’s directions. Kainé appeared just a little bit annoyed by being forced to do relatively precise work, so most of it fell on Nier’s shoulders, but the repairs were really quite simple to implement, though manipulation of objects of this kind wouldn’t be possible for a flying book unless it possessed some kind of power completely different than Weiss did, one that’d allow it to make other objects float in a restricted and controlled manner.

 

The book was floating around, trying to analyze its own situation in regards to these two. Turchesi realized that even after they activated the robot, for now she could only treat them as allies, as they were both vital to her success and too problematic for her to try dealing with on her own yet. The boy’s curiosity however made it dangerous for her to remain true to her end of the bargain, which pained her; if his questions struck too close home, she’d have to lie or defer to the woman’s judgment, otherwise, there was the risk of the woman turning on her in an effort to stop her from telling the boy too much. For someone who realized the truth about the world, there were numerous things Turchesi couldn’t explain about Kainé, starting with her level of power, continuing with her ability to just keep on slaughtering Gestalts like it was no big deal, lying to the boy in a seeming effort to either protect him or manipulate him… She also didn’t develop Black Scrawl yet, which meant that for all intents and purposes, her own Gestalt must’ve been sane and well somewhere.

For the future, this meant Kainé could be a major asset or a major problem. Because of how Turchesi’s plan worked, waiting until Kainé’s gestalt relapses and she dies of Black Scrawl was a definite option, but it’d be far better to get her to be at least sympathetic to the plan – and that meant helping her manipulate the boy, whatever her reasons for doing so might be, and despite said boy being the one who carried part of the Grimoire’s hope.

 

She floated over the body of Glow-7A-WRM and slowly tried to initiate its mechanisms through transfer of magical energy. It was a wonderful and pretty self-sustaining machine once it started working properly so this moment was crucial. It was taking a while, too, causing Kainé to start complaining in no uncertain terms, but eventually the spiral-like mechanisms along the robot’s waist and the ones almost meeting near its “abdomen” by descending diagonally from what served as the almost humanoid robot’s shoulders started humming, as if there was significant movement inside. Sparks flew out of the robot’s chassis momentarily and a crackling noise was added to the humming, just before the runelike symbols on its body started to emit a slight glow.

The robot stood up, trying to check out its surroundings with a thin visor placed on the piece mimicking a head, before turning to the Grimoire floating in the air next to him.

-  _You reactivated this unit through a transfer of energy and influx of compatible maso particles. For what purpose are this unit’s services required? How should this unit refer to the reactivator, and what name should this unit try to respond to?_

-  _I am Grimoire Turchesi. For now, please respond to your designated number, Glow-7A-WRM, although I intend to provide you with a different name in the future. We require access to the databases deeper inside this facility, so we will require your aid in bypassing the defense system and reactivating the control room housing the database to the greatest degree possible. These two will be aiding me in this request, you can refer to them as Kainé and Nier._

-  _This procedure is not accessible from this unit’s primary memory core. The primary memory core seems to have inaccessible sectors._

-  _The system’s of this facility are no longer operational, unit Glow-7A-WRM, and the primary plans and purposes of this place’s research have been rendered meaningless or nonfunctional. All of them. Your purposes will be different from now on. Disable the primary memory core and activate all alternative memory reservoirs of both accessible types. From now on, you will start being repurposed, and you will be following me._

-  _This unit… understands. Proceeding…_

 

Grimoire Turchesi altered its course in air and directed itself towards as of yet unexplored passage.

-  _It’s fully operational and understands the commands I have learned about it. This is excellent. Kainé, Nier, please continue with our alliance until we obtain the knowledge we find useful form this facility. It’s going to be a little tougher now, so we will require your strength to aid us._

-  _Is this robot’s okay? I sure as hell didn’t understand a single fucking word you’ve spoken, but it seems unused to situation and was just barely activated. Will it work?_

-  _Yes. Glow-7A-WRM possesses above-average fighting capabilities, but I have the commands to limit them to ensure it doesn’t go low on energy. Since it is capable of self-generating … “technological” energy almost endlessly as long as both magical and technological energy is passing through it, its energy levels will continue to rise if we don’t overstrain it. Which is why we’ll need you two and my magic for the upcoming fight. Glow-7A-WRM?_

-  _Yes. I am ready, Grimoire Turchesi._

 

It was something easy enough to notice. The robot did not refer to itself as “This unit”, nor in any manner of third person, after this change in procedure.

Kainé sighed. It appeared they were not swindled after all. If Turchesi was fine with cultivating identity even in an old machine, she must’ve had a mind that treated replicants at least a little bit better than Noir did. At the very least, it – or she -  was not as much of a liar as Devola and Popola were in obtaining their own goals. Turchesi did say she’d be getting the better end of the deal, but she also said she’d give them access to information useful to them…

And answer their questions.

If she answered them properly after recognizing there are some things Nier shouldn’t know yet – or at all, and if she kept up her end of the bargain, Kainé was willing to let the grimoire live, or whatever being a floating book passed as.

 

 

 

 

It seemed that, for whatever reason, the humans of old had a penchant of creating long, dramatic passageways into rooms of importance for storing something away.

The main path to the “control center” which housed the “database” consisted of what seemed to be a large bridge leading to a set of stairs with a gate at the end. However, the bridge nor the stairs were not empty. The number of robots here has been lower, but they all seemed to be in relatively good shape, and accompanying them were armed and armored Shades. Mostly consisting of the tall variety with a large macelike weapon, there were also a couple smaller ones with what seemed to be a staff or an oversized key, and they immediately took notice of the intruders. The smaller ones started the bombardment of Kainé and Nier straight away, sending strings of homing magic orbs at them  only for the swordswoman to cut them mid-air, allowing Nier a clear passage. Going forward, he waited just long enough for one of the large Shades to swing its weapon, noticing the peculiar weakness in its armor ; its legs, short and stumpy compared to its general size, were not really armored well along the knees, revealing a spot in which his blade could easily fit and pierce through the thinner armor. Nier took advantage of it immediately, piercing through the monster’s “leg” and causing it to trip and fall forwards.

Kainé was already there in a whirl of blades and kicks, assaulting the shade before it even properly fell to the ground and tipping it off the wide bridge to its demise below. It appeared the two of them could still work well together even in a fight against mildly stronger opponents.

Nier jumped away from another strike of one of the mace-equipped Shades and cut down the nearby smaller magic-using Shade in one lunge from above and several quick follow-up strikes. The robots were also approaching. One of the robots’ metallic body clanking before its legs seemed torn up in a single powerful slice before Kainé struck at its exposed chassis, trying to destroy the elements necessary for it to continue functioning.

 

After several more moments of taking the front, they finally received support from Turchesi and her new robot, too. Nier recognized Turchesi’s spell. It was a simple one, consisting of a small amount of homing, relatively strong magic missiles followed by straightforward rapid attacks with smaller ones.  It was the first Sealed Verse Weiss had shown being able to use, although Turchesi’s version seemed a little bit different somehow.

She commanded something to the robot, using weird parameters Nier didn’t exactly understand, and lightning seemed to arc from the robot and start frying the circuits of the machines attacking them. Certainly, Turchesi made the right pick when it came to dealing with issues related to the ancient technology, making Nier and Kainé’s job easier as they simply passed through the small group of robots to rapidly mow down the armor of one of the larger Shades, then letting its blood spurt out of the fresh ‘wounds’ their cuts started to cause.

Turning his body, it was Nier’s turn to start repelling the incoming blasts of the smaller Shades. With a weapon that held even a small amount of magic, the Shades’ most basic method of attack, no matter how rapid or overwhelming, could often be dealt with. Still, it took right timing and skill to do it the way Kaine or Nier could do it. Nier had to get it fully down pat with his new weapon, too, which he was sure was part of Kainé’s intent in letting him get ahead for the moment. Still, it was like it’s been in his blood for a while now, and eventually the smaller Shades had nowhere to hide or run from Nier’s and Kaine’s swords, which started to mow the group down as if it was the predetermined outcome form the beginning. One of the larger Shades was trying to engage Turchesi’s robot, while the other struck at Kaine only to find her movements quick enough to have her pummeling her blades on his armored arms moments after his hit struck the ground.

-  _Damn it, book, it’s not easy to deal with them when they’re protected! Stop using the weakest spell and do something seriously!_

-  _The weakest?...  It’s not even that simple, human! But here it comes!_

 

A sphere of blueish color appeared to surround Turchesi, intensifying, growing thicker, then almost hardening as purple lines pulsed along in seemingly random patterns. The book charged much in the same manner Rubrum or Noir would in the past, which was something only Kainé has seen. Sensing the nature of the spell, however, Nier helped Kaine finish off the large shade with several quick swings at is back, severing one of its arms along the way after Kaine pierced through its armor. Turchesi’s “charge” smacked down several of the smaller shades, pummeled into the last remaining large one other than the one fighting Glow-7A-WRM, and discharged its energy in what seemed to be a chaotic set of pulses which left small imprints along the bridge; clearly the book was careful not to damage it overmuch.

 

Entrusting the last large shade to 7A, Kainé and Nier finished their job with the smallest shades. The fight was done.

-  _Human, to start with, please allow me to properly analyze your own strength and strategies before you tell me what to do. Second of all, while all of our powers started off very similar, the tomes received certain modifications soon after the point of creation. I don’t know if Grimoire Weiss possessed a similar spell as his ‘weakest’ one, but if I was to say by the level of energy produced and whatnot, the spell you called that is my second from the bottom. Finally, I need to conserve my magic. You already had shown yourself strong enough to damage the shades’ and robots’ armor normally with just your sword strikes, so I wanted to leave as much to you as possible, since the Shade guarding the databases will not be any small fry and the full power of us all may be necessary. Although, I must admit it is very touching to see the weapon of the one I admire in use of such talented hands… I’ll make sure to remember about you two._

-  _The weapon of one you admire? What’s this about?_

-  _You’ll probably learn even by accident once we get to the database. For now, let’s focus on doing that._

-  _The big shade, huh… Very well. Let’s deal with it. True enough, there’s no substituting Emil that easy, I guess, but be sure to do things seriously this time. Oh, and remember… if I get the feeling you’re trying to cheat us, you’re done, and your robot will be getting in trouble, too._

-  _More warnings are unnecessary. I understand perfectly, hum… Kainé._

 

They ascended the stairs. The gate was easy enough to open, but much to Kainé’s  chargrin, it didn’t open to a chamber. Instead, it looked like the people constructing this spot had an obsession with bridges. A wide one connected the place they stood in yet another set of doors at the other end, ones which seemed to be more robotic than the ones before, and were left opened.  The inside of the room at the other end was just barely visible, and it looked like almost nothing Kaine has seen outside of Shadowlord’s castle. Something else came into view, blocking the door.

 

It was a large, twisting shape, almost oval, but not quite. In front of it, something was mildly glowing through the simmering particles, smoke, and twisted, floating black symbols and writing that seemed to make up a Shade similar to the one she once saw Emil destroy in a huge explosion right after she managed to recover from something knocking her out. That giant shade in Aerie that made Emil go out of control.

But instead of eyes, something else seemed to protrude and get attention at the centre of this beast’s shape. It was mildly glowing, adding to the place’s illumination. Slightly bulging forwards, the shape seemed to resemble a square, and appeared somewhat similar to the eye-mimicking optical devices found on some robots, only much larger and seemingly a little flatter. She saw something in that large ‘eye’. Her, then Nier, then the robot. It wasn’t a reflection. It seemed to just try to copy their body shape with its eye, and then, around them, small writings seemed to appear.

Was that an attack? Was it just analyzing them?

 

The distance was large, so Kainé and Nier would have to approach normally. Thankfully, the book and its machine didn’t have quite so many limitations. On one side, Glow-7A-WRM released another two arcs of electricity to quickly try and zap the monster at a distance. At the same time, Turchesi charged something up, then bombarded the opponent with dozens of what seemed to be like miniscule versions of Weiss’ Dark Lance. Kaine wasted no time charging forwards, trying to get close to the shade which seemed confined to the relatively small – in regards to its body – room at the other end of the bridge. This proved to be a lot harder than she had expected. Rather than a ray, blast, or just series of magical orbs, the single constant feature in the shade’s mass of darkness released a more free-flowing attack than she had expected, something able to alter and change directions. Nier blocked the wide wave’s edge with his blade as he tried to continue pushing forwards, and Kaine tried leaping over it. She heard something before the wave of energy suddenly arced upwards to try and take her down, succeeding in damaging her body and making her lose most of her momentum as she painfully crashed back down on the floor below.

Her endurance wasn’t able to crazily recover like when she was a half-shade. She couldn’t be eating those attacks like that. Thankfully, the angle at which she tried to dodge allowed her to avoid most of the attack’s strength, but it was clear this shade was no small fry.

Nier was still progressing forwards, though his worry at Kainé’s state of  being seemed to slow him down somewhat. Turchesi and her robot started to move from behind them as well, which prompted the odd shade to unleash another of those energy waves right at them. Nier managed to dodge to the side, and Kaine was ready for the attack this time, but just as Nier was about to continue his progress forward, it happened.

Kaine heard that weird sound again, but this time, could figure what it meant.

-  _It’s going to bend! Nier, defend yourself!_

Surely enough, part of the free-flowing wave suddenly separated from the main attack somewhere along its length, altered its course and tried to blast Nier off of the bridge. Using his heavy sword and placing his leg against the support at the side of the bridge, the boy managed to withstand the attack without further damage.  Kaine then made her leaping attempt again, and this time, there was a certain pause before the sound reverberated at a higher rate again, trying to bend to strike her. But she was leaping at a lower altitude and much quicker now, and the wave of energy just couldn’t bend fast enough to reach her this time.

 

Both her and Nier were now close to the large shade.

-  _It makes that noise when it’s abound to bend it’s wave!_ – Kainé explained what seemed to be the trick to fighting the creature.

-  _No. Not just that, Kainé._

They were worried how their companions would handle the remnants of their opponent’s attack, but Turchesi seemed to be fine. Repeating the same attack she used against the shades moments before, she seemed to wrap herself up in a cocoon of energy and matter before slamming it into the shade, pushing him back and making the odd, eyelike light in its center dim down, then shut off.

The sides of the creature’s main body extended like tendrils, moving lazily as it each threw a weak orb or two at the group. Nier explained as they dealt with the weak attack.

-  _There’s a background noise all the time when it uses that energy wave. I don’t know the specifics but it grows louder when it wants to change the direction of it in any manner. The louder it gets, the more drastic the change of direction, but it can’t withdraw the energy it already pumped out, just alter the course._

-  _Understood –_ Turchesi indicated as her own spell was over, and she tried to attack the opponent with that variant of Dark Blast again. Her powers seemed limited at the time.

[“Is she the same as Weiss? Does she need to recover her strongest abilities yet?”]

 

It didn’t matter, however. It seemed they were naïve in thinking the shade only had one method of attack. The ends of wispy tendrils shone with an inner light and suddenly seemed to fire incredibly fast rays at the entire group. Kaine and Nier both dodged one and blocked another, but while their third rays, and Kaine’s fourth, luckily missed because the creature’s vision was apparently impaired, the fifth ray targeting Kainé and the fourth zeroed on Nier managed to hit. It was an odd, burning sensation that indicated if more of these rays managed to concentrate on one spot, they could burn through their entire body.

“Glowie” approached from behind, stopping the release of the shade’s next attack by firing off what seemed to be two ropes, and then discharging energy straight into the shade. The wispy tendrils altered their course towards what appeared to be the room’s walls to release its main body. At the same time, Turchesi slammed itself on Kaine’s left arm all of a sudden. The swordswoman felt the energy from the book channel towards her blade… it felt almost like the energy of her joining with Tyrann was being released, but this time, it thoroughly coated her weapon in an odd energy as her entire arm seemed to be covered with wisps of it.

-  _Gloaming Aura. One of the spells I can use. Every hit’s like using a weapon’s elemental charge about twice, and it can be used on any weapon, too. It dissipates quickly, so make sure to get in at least one strike, swordswoman._

Kainé wasted little time in darting towards the massive shade. Its “eye” suddenly flashed right back up again, only for it to release a sound vastly different than the one it operated the energy wave with after several slices from her enchanted left arm. Despite her not hitting its eye, it turned off again, but this time, it had a sense of foreboding. Kainé noticed the creature no longer used the tendrils it expanded all over the room, seemingly only holding onto something. In place of its eye, however, a sudden discharge of magical orbs in an amount easily hitting Kainé’s “top list of instances” with these flew out of where the odd visor apparently was.

A total of three main attack types so far, it seemed. Kaine was withdrawing from the dangerous spot in front of the creature, parrying with her blades like crazy until Nier stabbed at the being’s side with his own, regular aura-charged attack from the blade he got from Emil. This seemed effective and stopped the onslaught for a moment, and Kaine got away with only minor damage as Turchesi once again charged the powerful Shade with her shell-like spell.

[“Variant of Dark Blast, a way weaker version of the Dark Lance, that shell-like energy focus and discharge thing, probably mostly defensive but quite versatile, and a boost for someone she’s fighting with, the Gloaming Aura. Seems like she’s at four spells right now, but she could still be hiding something.”]

Kainé had to admit the Gloaming Aura spell seemed very useful in a companion, but they were still not working well together with Turchesi, who was also quite content to watch them struggle against some opponents, at least on the first glance. However, this strike actually revealed the book was preparing itself, as “Glowie” charged the large Shade right after its new owner, slamming an arm charged with electricity and apparently the Gloaming Aura into the shade.

 

The reaction was surprising. The beast released a yell of pain from somewhere, but it seemed to also start growing bigger, absorbing energy. More tendrils were appearing on its form, and the visor returned as it unleashed its wave right through Nier and Glow-7A-WRM who were in front of it.

 

 

Kaine skillfully avoided her own problem, which was an even greater onslaught of these odd burning energy rays, but was at the edge of her endurance and capability with her own blades heated up from blocking three of the strikes and her body dodging four more. To make matters worse, another powerful wave was released, this time with less maneuvering room, but the creature seemed loath to alter its course to the side as long as they were battling inside of this room; Kainé noticed they already passed some sort of tables with odd contraptions on them, so presumably it did not want to damage or destroy what it was protecting.

 

Still, despite dodging to the sides, all four participants suffered some minor damage.

-  _It’s going dark again! It’ll likely release those magic orbs!_

Kainé’s analysis was spot-on, and electricity arced along the first couple of orbs as 7A tried to shoot them down, but they seemed somewhat resistant to the treatment. Swings of Kainé’s and Nier’s blades seemed effective, but the beast wouldn’t stop growing, and the barrage continued as it did, making it seem like it was trying to change into something even bigger or limit their space in the room. Turchesi shot down many of the orb with her variant of Dark Blast, but they found it impossible to attack in this manner.

 

Until Nier seemed to understand the issue. Charging to the side of the room, he started to slam his swords against the creature’s tendrils, and it seemed that suddenly, smaller Shades fell off from the severed shadowy ‘tissue’. One after another, the heavy one-handed sword destroyed the original tendrils with which the creature attached itself to something along the walls.

-  _There are weird cords along the walls it connected itself to with these tendrils!_

-  _Can it absorb electricity?_ – Turchesi pondered aloud.

-  _No, no! When it’s connected like this, it seems able to pull shades from all over the place into itself, absorb them , and grow stronger!_

-  _I see! Gloaming Aura!_

The book tapped Kainé’s arm, the right one this time, initiating the spell again.

-  _Kainé, please try to push through and stop the constant attacks! Nier, continue severing these tendrils! Glow-7A-WRM, attach yourself to the cords and make sure there’s enough electricity in them to block the transfer of Shades even if it were to pull them! Gloaming Shell!_

Charging against the beast, through the magical orbs, Turchesi smashed herself into the large shape again and cleared a path for Kainé. The Gloaming Aura still persisted as the swordswoman begun her dance of death right at the spot where the orbs were originally coming out from, slashing hard enough to practically make the creature swallow its own attacking attempts. It seemed there was one last weakness to their opponent – the screen wouldn’t activate for as long as the Grimoire’s spell persisted on Kainé’s arm. It could only fire this massive amount of orbs when its visor was off, and it could only use the weird, sound-controlled energy wave when it was on. That’s the hypothesis Kainé made when the visor finally activated once the spell seemed to dissipate, anyway.

[“Maybe it’s like an eye, but vulnerable only to a magic attack, and as long as it isn’t active and glowing not even that can damage it?”]

Nier was fast. The creature’s original tendrils were all cut up, and all that remained were the additional ‘limbs’ it grew when it gorged itself on lesser Shades. There was a loud humming behind her, and Kainé realized the robot was preparing to do something as well, along with making the cords impossible to use for their opponent. Which meant, if its own attack was going to come quickly, she’d have to absorb the full strength of the wave at the area which threatened the robot.

So she did. Falling onto one knee after the entire surge of power passed through her, she realized  she’d be in trouble after the next attack, and dead after two more if she tried to tackle them head-on. Quickly, she tossed a piece of a medicinal herb in her mouth to initiate a better recovery, but the second blast was already incoming.

 

Nier came from above, slamming his aura-charged blade in the path of the energy wave.  Taking the rest of the energy wave head on, the young warrior seemed determine to not let Kainé get any more damaged, pissing her off a bit, just as Turchesi forced the large Shade to turn off its visor by attacking it repeatedly with her spells. Hovering over Kaine, it released the Gloaming Aura again to enhance her attack.

Nier was just quick enough to start the onslaught before the Shade could respond with its odd burning rays or the barrage of magic orbs, slicing and cutting where its visor once was, only for Kaine to join him in on it. Step after step and soar after soar, the shade’s large body was being pushed against the further wall of the room he was defending until they heard Turchesi’s voice. “Withdraw! Move away from it!”

 

As they did, the book itself bounced her body into the Shade’s with another “Shell” spell, stopping it from counter-attacking just as Kainé and Nier watched the spectacle they didn’t think they’d get to see.

Glow-7A-WRM’s body seemed expanded, with one of its “arms” charging itself up with immense amounts of electricity. The humming was incredibly noisy now, only it was coming from the machine, and the light normally generated by the visible crackles of electric discharge on its arm was instead dimmed.

Turchesi managed to put her Gloaming Aura onto a robot, evidently. And with the shade now pushed against the wall, the full fury of the robot’s supercharged attack was released as it slammed said Shade stronger against the further-up limitation of the room, causing cracks to appear in the wall and that side of the spherical ceiling. The massive amount of electricity proved that the Shade could be damaged by it pretty well after all, especially when a Grimoire’s magic was involved into the mix.

 

However, it wouldn’t go down so easy. The shade was still very much active and alive after Glow detached himself from the beast once his Gloaming Aura and most of the electric power it accumulated in its arm had dissipated, seemingly not wanting to run short on power, or worried the opponent could adapt to and absorb its electric energy if it wasn’t released with magic and at a sufficient intensity. Kainé and Nier barely had any idea how the robots’ and machines’ sources of power worked, but it was pretty evident this Shade had some sort of connection to it as well.

 

Rather than continue fighting, the Shade pressed itself against the cracked wall and seemed to turn even more volatile, airy and insubstantial. Passing through the cracks, some of its mass was left behind as a kind of viscous semi-liquid which dripped to the ground and appeared to re-manifest into small Shades.

Kainé was back on her feet, quickly slaughtering the little beasts while Turchesi and A7 recuperated from their attacks. Nier instead ran towards the door of the room, observing what the shape of the shade, now devoid of the wispy tendrils and seeming to move as a lump of shadow, was about to do. Instead of turning on them or the room it protected, however, the shade continued to move away, flying out of the area visible to Nier and possibly trying to exit the mountain.

-  _I think it’s escaping!_

-  _It may be trying to find more shades to fuse with, or a spot in which it could strike us down when we exit!_ – Turchesi explained. _– Especially if that spot has some sort of machinery to aid it and for it to control…_

-  _Gideon’s base? Is it going to try to attack Gideon from here, and then us from his spot?_

 

Kainénodded.

-  _That’s likely, but it can’t just pass through walls at its will, I’d say. So Gideon has a fighting chance. We should probably get what we came here for, and then check what’ll happen to the two of them._

-  _But… Kainé!_

-  _It’s desperate enough to escape, and there aren’t that many shades left in the area. It fighting Gideon only helps us in taking him down. Only that guy’s machines can save him now… except for Emil._

-  _Isn’t Emil in danger, too?_

-  _Against a distracted shade, weakened like this? No. Gideon’s life might now be depending on an act of kindness from Emil. If he can get in even just a couple good strikes, or unleashes his power to its full extent, this shade’s done for. Though, in the latter case… Gideon’s done for, too, and we may need a new way to exit this place._

-  _Are you certain this “Emil” you speak of can handle it? The enemy certainly is powerful, even if it has a lot of limitations on how its abilities work._

-  _Well, it can’t toss around or fire beams from its tendrils anymore, so all that remains are magic orbs or that wave. Emil can overpower both. Now, can your robot still turn this place on?_

-  _Easily. The amount of time it took charging up the attack actually allowed him to generate a surplus of electricity. We can now connect to the database._

-  _Well, we’ve done our part of the bargain._

-  _Not yet, but I’ll take your promise on the final part. You’ll have to distract this Gideon person while me and Glow-7A-WRM escape, remember?_

-  _Yes, but we’re certainly not waiting until you escape to get our payment._

-  _I would never make such an unreasonable demand._

Gathering the power cords, the robot started to extend pieces of its own construction. It formed a small web of stringlike extensions all over the room.

-  _Positions 1b, 2c and 2d are unavailable. The remaining 10 positions in the network will be fully operational, although there’s a risk of chief components in computer 3d frying._

-  _Excellent. Even after so many years, with Glow-7A-WRM, almost everything can be functional. Kainé, Nier, it seems our plan was a success. Are the printers operational?_

-  _All five of the printers can operate at full capacity, although there’s a risk of printer 5 being damaged by rubble from where the enemy escaped previously._

-  _We’ll limit ourselves to four of them, then. Please start them all up now._

The contraptions on the tables all beeped or hummed as the robot received its command. Nier realized how similar the things which seemed to display a picture through light were to the ‘eye’ of the shade they just battled. Kainé was mostly at a loss of words for the Grimoire to be able to access this weird and old technology as the slightly shadowed room was suddenly illuminated fully with the bright monitors of the ten functioning computers inside. They displayed various names in odd alphabets and then, it seemed, the vast amount of knowledge hidden in that place became accessible as 7A immediately begun searching through the accessible data for what Turchesi wanted, and for what she knew seemed to be of consequence to her allies.

-  _As long as you’re confident in your friend, we may take however long we wish. With these systems, it’s possible to create the maps of the places you have an interest in, a guide on deciphering several older languages and to produce small books in the matter of minutes. It’d be nice if any more versatile databases were still reachable easily, but even so I believe this robot is the key to accessing most of them. I already instructed him to research about the existence I want to know of, as well as the nearby centers that you may be interested in, but in the meantime, please feel free to state anymore questions to me or about what may be found for your benefit in this database. I intend to follow our contract to the letter and in its entire spirit._

Kainé seemed quite stunned by the grimoire’s declaration and the entire situation, enough to not be able to come up with something to occupy their minds immediately. Nier, however, was pretty quick and quite adamant about the thing he needed to learn about other than centers on things like magic or memory alteration.

-  _Black Scrawl. Please tell me everything you can about Black Scrawl._

 

Turchesi’s fair-spiritedness and apparent jolliness at being able to reach both the information she wanted and the information her temporary allies were after was shaken to the very core by the look in Kainé’s eyes. A glare which told her just how much of a minefield this topic was going to be.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some quick explanations :  
> \- Supposedly, the Grimoire creation process produced 13 books. With the game holding only 3, they were an obvious potential NPC-type to explore in any follow-up stories. I decided to have Turchesi only share some powers with Weiss, though.  
> \- The process of naming characters found in Junk Heap is preserved from the game, though a little more roundabout than most of the names.  
> \- Emil's attack-naming (dis)ability in this chapter's only 50% my fault. The concept of how his magic works is entirely made up by me, but it sounded relatively plausible compared to the events happening in the game.


	9. 3a - Arms and Keys, Lost and Found

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group finishes gathering information together with Turchesi, and Emil has to face a large Shade with his magic once more. What sort of knowledge can the group obtain before they even return? What sorts of things from the past will haunt them again?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally an update! This chapter's fairly long. I originally intended to include the entire event at the end in this chapter, but decided then the next one will end up looking too short.

Emil found himself highly nervous because of the sensation he’s been getting from inside of the Junk Heap – that of powerful magic being repeatedly unleashed in what seemed to be a violent battle. He was really rather stressed when the large shade appeared, like steam rising from the mountaintop, but he didn’t have a bad feeling about Kainé and Nier. In fact, it looked almost like the shade was escaping. Emil still didn’t fully control all of his magical skills, and scanning for signs of life through this much metal and rock was practically impossible for him, so he had to believe in them for now.

 

The problem was what to do with the fact that the shade seemed to immediately detect Gideon, and the young man wasn’t going to remain silent about its appearance. Turning what appeared to be a variety of canon-imitations, salvaged guns, and similar weaponry, Gideon unleashed the first salve of attacks on the shade who in turn directed several beams of light to start melting the outside of Gideon’s hideout, including some of his weapons. It then drifted closer towards Gideon’s hiding spot, and appeared quite intent on threatening the youth’s life.

If Kainé and Nier were trapped inside for whatever reasons, Gideon was the one person acquainted enough with that place to help him find them.

As troublesome as it was, it was clear the young man had to survive, but Emil didn’t know if he could win against the large shade or not. If he could win without help, he’d refuse to aid Emil later, but if Emil tried to rescue him too early or too late, it might’ve been troublesome, too. However, when the large Shade started to unleash its other weapons, and Gideon’s own salvaged technology started to slow down on him, it was clear to Emil that the younger brother of Jakob couldn’t really hold his own in this situation at least for the moment, so it was the perfect time for the intervention and to play the hero.

[“Oookaaay. Emil, this is it. You’re going to have to take that distance in one quick burst, so we’re going to use that. And then, since you’re designing them to work together, maybe that other thing, too. Kainé will be so mad at me when she hears those names, huh…”]

_\- E…. EMIL RUSH TEST VERSION!_

 

Emil managed to beat a fair amount of distance with the sudden rush of speed, forwards and upwards, towards the Shade and Gideon’s base, but it wasn’t quite enough. Firing one of his smaller energy rays, the magical weapon tried to ascertain the amount of ‘damage’ that was dealt to his magical parameters with his underdeveloped spell, but he seemed to still be on the safe side, while too far away from the Shade to properly engage it.

_\- Emil Rush Test Version, again!_

Sudden burst of speed had Emil ramming himself into the Shade instead, now, the distance clearly calculated poorly and the spell still largely unstable in regards to control of the pace and distance. Before the velocity caused him to bounce off of the shade, Emil grabbed his new spear and plunged it into his opponent, momentarily stabilizing himself before the large Gestalt tore itself away. Emil realized Gideon was looking now and trying to fix his weapons.

_\- Emil Beam, Prototype!_

 

Even with the undercontrolled version, from this close there was no way Emil’s beam would’ve gotten anywhere he didn’t want it to. A ray of light shot out right through his eyes, traumatizing the powerful Shade and trying to pierce and burn through it all at once. After the spell subsided somewhat, Emil checked again, noticing there was now an increasing risk of his magic getting out of control. This meant he’d have to finish this fight quickly, with little damage, and only spells of levels he was used to.

That was certainly possible for him by now.

 

 

 

Kainé and Nier themselves were, unknown to Emil, entirely fine, although the experience related to fixing the injuries from their fight left even Kainé a little off of her game.

They lacked the money to buy any of the high-powered healing potions even if they’ve had access to them, so instead they were going to use the healing salves. Which were very effective and all, only not all wounded spots were that easy to reach on either of them, which ended with a short round of rubbing the powerful medication on each other while Turchesi and her new robot begun scanning through the databases in order to reach the information both sides expressed interest in so far. It was really quite amazing that this robot, with just a little bit of magic thrown into him, was able to run ancient human technology all by himself. When Nier’s unsure fingers finally finished rubbing the medication on her waistline after coating her thigh and calf, which were lightly burned with the laserlike rays the Shade employed, Kainé decided to have him finish putting the remaining ointment on his own wounds as she approached Turchesi to request the final piece of information she wouldn’t want Nier to learn about just yet, although there was a risk he’d find out later.

_\- Turchesi, there’s one more thing I wanted to know about, but keep it down._

_\- You’re trying to keep too many secrets from this boy for someone who’s constantly traveling with you… But fine. What sort of information do you require?_

_\- Give me information on all centers that had to do with “Fertility improvement” and “Infertility treatment”. Particularly for males. Men, that is._

 

The pause suggested that if Turchesi had the ability to raise an eyebrow, she’d do just that.

_\- Uhhh… If I may ask… What for? I had the feeling you were aware tha…_

_\- I’m aware of everything, but unless you spill the guts on literally everything you are up to, you won’t get any information from me on why I’d research such a thing. Even if it’s hopeless, it’s something I want to look into, and it’s actually *less* pointless than you think it is, so there. Now do it, and make sure I get enough information. And do stay quiet about this._

_\- All right, all right. But it’s inevitable everyone here will see some of the other group’s files, so if it comes down to confrontation about such newfound information, I’m not lying._

_\- Make sure to give us the means of decoding information as well._

_\- Of course. Like I said, I do keep my end of such bargains, and you’ve done well with your side of it so far._

 

Nier was done with his own injury and slowly slid across the floor to join Kainé and Turchesi in their talk, clearly a little annoyed by being left out of whatever they discussed.

_\- Grimoire Turchesi, would you be willing to tell us about who or what is it that you’re trying to research? And how are they related to the military?_

_-Hmm… The person I am interested in is someone from past so ancient, it would do you no good even if I tried explaining, honestly._

_\- Is he whom you meant when you said about seeing the weapon of someone “you admire” being in “talented hands”?_ – Kainé asked matter-of-factly.

_\- Yes, indeed. I have every reason to believe the blade young Nier is using right now was once one of the many items in possession of, and it is my belief, made by the person that is chief to my research._

Kainé nodded. This answer satisfied her. When she heard Turchesi say these words earlier, she was frankly worried that she’s had someone with an obsession about the Shadowlord or one of the replicants of Nier – even the one she traveled with originally – on her hands.

_\- Made by? So, the person whom you admire is someone who created weapons and maybe other tools?_

_\- It’s difficult to tell as there’s very little information about him. I believe I may be able to find more and then decide what is the best course of action to take with what I have learned of him and the tools he obtained or has created, but I do believe he was one capable when it came to engineering, creating, and polishing tools and weapons, indeed. I believe him to be a great creator, constructor, and engineer, whose skills and knowledge might’ve been helpful in these times, although it’s equally possible he was simply a very skilled blacksmith who merely produced a lot of weapons such as this one._ – Turchesi continued to explain.

_\- It does sound like an interesting person… and someone whose abilities could be useful right now. So, my blade was made by someone one of the Grimoires is themselves trying to research… guess it was a greater gift than I’d have thought._

_\- Possibly. But it also seems you know little about this person, book. I take it you have a final objective in regards to him?_

_\- Perhaps… and perhaps not. We shall see. We’re initiating the print-out of your tools for translation and decoding, please make sure to get all the papers in order when the machines up there spit them out._

_\- Sure enough. I presume it’s not that easy to decode ancient languages, though._

_\- It isn’t, but this place should also contain a small device for that which will be able to give you some results on the spot. Regrettably, it’ll only work for so long without an entity such as Glow-7A-WRM or ancient technology for you to replenish its energy, so I’d still recommend relying primarily on the print-outs. Now, other than the computer data, there’s also the catalogues in the small basement underneath this room, so once your printout is ready, we can get down there to see if maybe anything interests us._

With that, they’ve had several moments of silence as the ancient objectively, but cutting-edge technology by the time original humans were trying their hardest against the threat that ended up with creation of Project Gestalt, laser printers continued to produce high-quality prints of information Kainé and Nier would be basing their next actions – and possibly new adventures – off of at a high pace, the characteristic sounds of the devices as they imprinted information on paper and spewing it out impossible to remove and unforgettable even in the times of the dusk of mankind.

 

 

 

Emil was still having to face off against the Shade. He couldn’t help but notice that his opponent already seemed quite damaged – the amount of laser-like ray attacks he could pull off seemed underwhelming, and the tendrils he used to do so appeared small and fresh. There was an occasional droplet of blood falling from several spots on its body, so the boy-turned-magic-weapon presumed it suffered heavy damage from fighting someone. That someone was likely Nier and Kainé, whom Emil hoped were all right – his intuition was telling him so, but intuition was a highly faulty tool.

Emil suffered some more damage from two oddly-arcing waves of energy, but his ability to fly rendered him a lot harder to hit with it directly than – unknown to him – his friends found themselves to be a while earlier. Emil heard a groan from below, followed by Gideon’s voice.

_\- A SHADE ATTACKING ME AND GETTING ATTACKED BY A ROBOT!?!? WHAT DO YOU WANT, MACHINE!? JUST TO TAKE ME DOWN YOURSELF? TAKE THE LEGENDARY MACHINE SLAYER GIDEON DOWN YOURSELF HUH!? WELL FUCK YOU! Hue! UEHEHEHEH!_

That was really worrying. No matter the circumstances, Gideon would assume someone who looked at least a bit mechanical was going to try and kill him.

_\- No, Gideon! Try to remember me! It’s me, Emil! I’m with Kainé! Even though I look like this, I am no robot!_

 

To Emil’s surprise, Gideon became silent, but Emil himself wasted time on checking out *why* and got razed by that weird energy wave again, this time almost directly. He couldn’t afford to be taking this kind of damage, so he decided to end the fight quickly if possible.

 

The large Shade’s apparent visor suddenly stopped emitting a faint light it did before, its body becoming uniformly dark. From where the light once came, now out swarmed a mass of magic orbs.

Emil decided trapping the enemy in this attack mode and overwhelming him should give him victory, but to do that, he’d have to use another one of his spells.

[“Kainé is really going to lay it down on me if she hears this attack’s name…”]

_\- Sensei’s Regretarrage!_

_\- Sewhat?_

 

Gideon seemed to shake himself out of his reverie at Emil attack’s name, but apparently didn’t understand it well. The spell itself formed immediately with magical symbols flashing mid-air and Emil’s four hands being thrust forward. A series of white comet-like magic missiles mixed in with smaller, green, glowing orbs that completed the attack. The concept was exactly the same as the shade’s attack – to overwhelm the opponent with weak-to-moderate blasts of magic, making it difficult to avoid the onslaught and get out of it once hit.

The difference was, Emil’s attack was simply better in every way than mostly anything related to Shades’ magic orbs he’s come across so far, and it was true in this case as well. Emil’s blasts nullified more of Shades’ orbs, and the balance between the two clashing barrage attacks was constantly being pushed into the shade’s direction. Emil hypothesized his opponent’s sensory input was limited now that the front/visor was turned ‘off’, but even if it wasn’t, eventually the boy’s attack would connect.

Floating further forwards, Emil prepared himself to resume the barrage when the first blasts started hitting the shade.

_\- Sensei’s Regretarrage, again!_

The intensity and amount of blasts released was returned to its original state as the weaker attacks seemed to start really overwhelming his opponent with damage, adding to what was already inflicted before. Emil was too close for the shade’s attempts at movement to do him any good, but far enough to avoid any negative feedback from the force behind his magical barrage of attacks.

Emil recognized his opponent was close to being finished, but his own magical power was past that point where containing it was still relatively easy. If the battle would prolong itself now that he’s been damaged and he used an as-of-yet undeveloped spells thrice, there was a serious risk of his magic power resonating out of control and causing another small-scale cataclysm.

He had to finish it now, although he also had to stick to spells he was already good at controlling.

The metaphorical smoke of his second attempt with the continuous-missiles spell not even cleared yet, Emil went for the safe and secure in terms of the finishing strike.

_\- Halboltua!_

The bolt-like, much stronger missile of energy flew and struck true at the shade, which was being pushed into defense for a while now.

Puffs of smoke, orange, red, and silver-bluish light erupted from the core of the shade as the screen-like visor on its front flashed twice, the second time around showing some indiscernible message. The large gestalt appeared to completely lose cohesion then, odd scribbles of writing so similar to what Emil was already used to seeing spreading wildly throughout the air and then dissipating as the shade’s mass and size seemed to decrease. The entirety of its being finally collapsed upon itself, releasing a wave of electric and magical energy along with a gust of wave, which Emil decided to try to outrun by dropping himself from the height at which they were battling.

_\- Gideon, take cover!_

He wasn’t sure if the wave could harm Gideon where he was, but it was best to take caution. This shade reminded Emil of the one he destroyed by losing control over his own power back in Aerie… taking down the entire city with him. It was more controlled, more predictable, and thus, with the damage dealt to it, weaker, but it still made Emil feel uncomfortable about the state in which it left him. A couple more spells, and this fight might’ve ended the same way as back then. Even after four years of trying to be…

[“No. That’s not true. This time, I was being a little careless because I wanted to save Gideon. But… I didn’t have help from Weiss and… probably the Nier from back then, either. I was finishing their job, but while I got careless, it’s clear that I improved. And Kainé didn’t slack off, either. When Nier catches up to us, I think we’ll be able to guarantee each other’s safety. That’s probably why she’s pushing us so hard to continue traveling and battling. So he can have our backs, too.”]

 

Turning up, Emil saw Gideon was fine. Slowly, raising arms up to mimic the universal sign of having no violent intentions, he floated to the young man’s hideout.

 

 

 

Kainé, in the meantime, realized there was just no way they were going to be able to do much traveling with so much stuff to carry. They needed some basic means of transport to move it all to Emil’s mansion or another safe spot as fast as possible, otherwise, they may require weeks to safely carry it, especially if they were interrupted by wild animals and Shades along the way. Hopefully, there was something to be found in Junk Heap that would help with transportation.

However, right now she had another issue on her head. She was quite aware why Turchesi asked for a couple of moments to help ‘direct’ her robot. She needed a version of a story about Black Scrawl that covered it without revealing the truth about Gestalts and Replicants, but unlike her, she didn’t want to give even a *white* lie to Nier. This book was, apparently, quite big on the issue of staying true to her deals, though whether it was the letter or the spirit of the deal was important and as of yet unknown.

One way or another, it was the time for Turchesi to answer Nier’s questions in regards to the Black Scrawl.

\- In regards to your previous question, young Nier… Black Scrawl is indeed an illness connected with the Shades, although I believe Noir or Weiss would be better qualified to answer your questions in regards to it. I apologize upfront for only possessing this much information and if said information doesn’t satisfy your curiosity, but, frankly… I believe almost all of us Grimoires will temporarily be at below full capacity in regards to knowledge and power, regardless of which ones you’d be able to meet, and some of them likely won’t be able to communicate at all because of the way they were made. Still, if that is okay, and if you understand some information I give you may be only part of the truth, I shall now try answering your question to the utmost of my ablity.

_\- I do understand you can’t tell me everything about it, but you definitely know more than Weiss did… his memory was quite damaged, and as it turns out, we were lead into a trap because of it…_

 

[“Ffuuuuckiing hell, Nier, why don’t you just tell her where Yonah lives and mention kidnapping her would let her manipulate you to do anything she wants while you’re at it, huh? You’re way, way, way too trusting of her and *just* because she reminds you of Weiss, too. What’s going on anyway with all the curiosity? Can’t I just get him to butcher Shades like it’s good old times?”] – Kainé’s mind was even harder at work than Turchesi must’ve been, although the reasons and purpose seemed a tad more nefarious.

_\- I see. Well, that means there are not many people that are not directly allied with the ‘rational’ Shades that would be able to tell you about it. To put it simply, Black Scrawl is kind of the inevitable result of Shades trying to survive._

_\- So, if all Shades died…_

_\- No. I don’t know what’d happen if all Shades were destroyed, particularly in terms of them dying over too short a time period, but that’s not the answer. To the best of my knowledge, a Shade dying also means someone can contract Black Scrawl from this event. And, as you may know… it is both fatal and more or less impossible to cure._

_\- But what’s the reason? Why do Shades infect others with this?_

_\- A Shade has only several ways to survive in this world. It can go insane and become the sort of monster who consistently goes after your people, it can obtain an element that keeps it sane without the strain it puts on the mind and will of the Shade – which will now be impossible, given that the Sh…_

A pause.

_\- The Sh…?_

_\- I apologize. I was going to use a term us Grimoires and some of the Shades use to refer to it, but I realized it’s both difficult to spell and impossible to truly translate to your language._

 

Kainé noticed this was the first flat-out lie Turchesi gave him.

_\- I see. It’ll be impossible because Weiss, Noir, and whatever they and Popola and Devola were able to produce is gone, right?_

 

Kainé barely stopped herself from hissing.

_\- Nier, for fuck’s sake, we barely met this book, so please don’t reveal *every single detail* of what was happening to us in the past half a decade or so to her, okay?_

_\- But… she seems trustworthy. She feels a bit like Weiss._

_\- Maybe that’s why I feel she’s not trustworthy at all. Book, continue._

_\- Yes. Well… when a Shade goes insane, and possibly when a Shade dies as well, there’s a release of its magical element that resonates with certain people. I presume some Shades actively try to take bodies to stall the process driving him insane, and that there are some Shades that force this process on bodies by trying to increase their affinity through some ways. But the crux of the matter is : When a Shade goes insane or dies, and there’s a body that has high enough affinity for that Shade to even hypothetically be able to possess them, that body contracts Black Scrawl._

_\- Doesn’t that mean now that Shades will have huge trouble holding onto their sanity, a lot more people will contract Black Scrawl?_

_\- Regrettably, that is my presumption as well. In fact, that presumption is part of the reason why I am searching for an alternative method of curing Black Scrawl, or perhaps preserving the Shade’s sanity instead. Both methods would work, though the former is preferable. The population of your people is too small already to be able to survive an epidemic of this disease without significant problems._

_\- That’s… dreadful news. But, does that mean by killing Shades, we risk…_

_\- No, no. Most of the Shades you and Kainé here are battling have already went insane, young Nier_. – Turchesi clarified after a somewhat nasty glare from the swordswoman. – _This means whomever could’ve contracted Black Scrawl from them already did. It’s killing the *sane* shades that is potentially risky to others. You can defend yourself to the best of your ability when you’re the one being attacked, with a clear conscience. The risk, and I’ll remind you that I’m not even entirely sure what happens in regards to Black Scrawl when a shade *dies*, is when you’re fighting the rational Shades._

_\- I see. Is there a way to know for sure if a shade’s rational or not?_

_\- None that you’d be able to use. If it indiscriminately attacks your people in their territory, it is almost certainly already insane. If its body is immense and not even remotely resembling a human anymore, it is very likely insane. No other big hints I can give you about it, I’m afraid._

_\- There’s no need to concern yourself with this sort of sillyness, Nier. After all, even these so-called “rational” shades were trying to do nothing more than use and abuse us. They’re no better than the insane ones and are now apparently doomed to go insane at some point anyway. Killing them is no better or worse than killing any other of t..._

_\- I just want to understand, Kainé. Maybe they have some motivation beyond survival and trying to stay on the top. Even if not, we should at least try to avoid causing more pain than necessary, to humans and those that are no longer human alike, I guess. What’d happen if a shade we killed indeed spread Black Scrawl, and to someone we cared about? You, me, Yonah?_

 

Kainé hissed again.

[“Why… Why why why? It’s too late! The previous you didn’t bother learning about the shades. Only after it was too late, maybe. Why do you? This isn’t something you need to concern yourself with anymore, Nier! The world’s doomed anyway, we can just continue the way we’ve been! All we need to do is become strong and then find a way to survive without coming into touch with those that don’t care for us! We don’t need to concern ourselves with silly morality bullshit in this sort of world. You didn’t care about understanding shades until it was way too late earlier! Why start now? For you, this sort of mentality was ‘too late’ from the start! We can’t change anything anymore! How can I… convince you to just let go and live from day to day for yourself and others before you get some stupid heroic quest in this head of yours? Convince you to just believe the stuff I say? Do I hook you on sex? Do I make it seem like Yonah’s not safe? Or should I just let you go about trying to find out what you apparently want to know? Even if it leads you to the truth?”]

 

_\- It just… seems like trouble. But, whatever. Just don’t expect me to try and save literally everyone if you’re worried about slashing down a shade or if someone takes advantage of your naivety._

[“Even though that’s probably exactly what I’m going to do…”]

_\- Anyway, thank you for the information, Turchesi. Time to gather up our information and check if there’s anything else we could find out… I think we’re also going to require a way to make transporting all these papers easier without damaging them…_

 

 

 

 

 

The maps didn’t require that much checking or comparison, nor translation. Granted, most of them described territories outside of what they explored during their travels to get to the Shadowlord,  but one in particular was oddly familiar, to the point of it getting Kainé worried.

_\- This… this place. It’s past that closed gate at Lost Shrine, isn’t it…_

 

Nier didn’t seem to get what she was talking about, but Turchesi did quite well. Indeed. Everything indicated one of the important research spots was hidden near the very area in which her, Emil, and the original Nier she met arrived through a said doorway to find – and take down – the Shadowlord. Which meant if they were going to find that area and research it, they needed to go through there again.

That meant gathering that key… which was part of what Kainé needed Gideon for.

It wasn’t exactly gathering. Kainé was still in possession of the key that opened the portal to Shadowlord’s castle, but the key itself was composed of fragments and two of those just seemed to disappear. She couldn’t even say when.

Kainé was beginning to see a possible reason. Nier was the one who gathered many of the group’s weapons, but now picked up weapons he thought he’d seen before near their old locations. Well, that only happened once, but still.

 

When she went back through the same path, with Yonah in place of Emil and Nier himself,  one piece of the key was there. Leaving her with four at hand and one to find – she just couldn’t guess which one from the key’s shape alone.

 

She guessed now that whatever caused the memory of Nier to disappear somehow also blurred existence to the point his weapons were back at their original spots, and the pieces of key she wouldn’t be able to find and obtain without him disappeared… perhaps when the mystically sealed door closed behind her, to avoid some major paradox.

 

Her brain wasn’t practiced or experienced at dealing with such oddities and mysterious events. She couldn’t even remember which piece was which, only where they found them.

And she was certain Junk Heap was one of those places.

_\- Gate  at the Lost Shrine? What do you mean, Kainé? That’s where I found Weiss!_

_\- It doesn’t matter, Nier. We both cannot and shouldn’t try going to that place yet._ – Kainé responded, searching through the maps. – We’ll check the other places first. That area is dangerous, and we can’t go there until we’re ready and shouldn’t go there either until we’ve checked everything else. Hopefully, we won’t even *need* to go there. _\-  Kainé remarked, a little surprised on this sort of thing coming up in an area close to where the Shadowlord once was. It was a place she hoped not to return to, but at the same time, it has always been an area she had to prepare herself to visit just in case._

 

As the base of all Gestalts and the Shadowlord, at least for this part of the world – and she had absolutely no idea how large ‘the world’ really was – it’d house many, many gestalts. Who were now almost certainly going to eventually relapse into monstrous shades.

So if the world wanted to have some peace for those that couldn’t fight such a threat, those that could needed a way in there. To purge Shades enough to make them less of a threat.

_\- If you say so. But, if that’s a place with a “gate”  and you know that, I may have some questions later._

_\- I’ll try to answer what I can. Book, that’s a lot of things to take out of here. We’re going to need something to transport that with. And over significant distances, too._

 

Turchesi floated a bit over Kainé.

_\- Of course. The several magazines here should provide you with small mobile platforms that’d make transporting everything you gathered here easier. Once you’re done storing and gathering what you needed, we’ll put it on these platforms and try going about the second part of the plan._

 

Kainé looked to Nier when Turchesi finished saying that. So far, she was seriously worried about the book not keeping up its part of the deal, but that didn’t happen. After that, she considered not keeping *her* part for a moment, but she was sure Nier would be opposed to it… and while her motivations were shady and unknown, it didn’t feel like the Grimoire was their enemy at the time, even if her chief point of research was related to the event that apparently caused the entire mess with Gestalts and Replicants in the first place.

So, she decided to just go with it. Help Turchesi and her robot escape There was a ton of suspicion on her mind and she did not want to trust the book, but with Nier around it was impossible to just try and destroy it on the spot. Maybe if they were together for more time, he’d fully trust her judgment on such things, but right now, *she couldn’t* trust her own judgment on this situation.

Today’s friends are tomorrow’s enemies, and vice versa, after all.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once they got themselves fully packed up, using a cart similar to one the humans of old used for shopping, and a kind of a wheelbarrow, to gather all of their new freshly-printed pieces of information and comfortably split transporting it, Kainé, Nier, Turchesi, and Glow-7A-WRM moved towards the ways to leave, and eventually split up so that Kainé and Nier would be able to push their own obtained print-outs and the small ‘just-for-emergencies’ translation device out near where they presumed Gideon would be.

 

 

It felt weird to be pushing things on wheels now, made of something strange and quasi-metallic that seemed to fail to strongly rust decompose even after this many years. But, for some reason, Nier felt all right with the sensation for some reason, as if it was the part of some ritual long forgotten but one that people were once used to. Approaching the exit,  Kainé stopped her cart and put her hands on the handles of her blades and slowly stepped out of the territory where they were covered, taking a glance in search of Gideon’s ‘sniping’ spot or the large Shade they chased out from deeper in the mountain. After several moments of looking around, she still didn’t see any sign of danger, so the swordswoman turned on her feet and took several more steps outside.

 

A small ray of energy, familiar-looking too, cut the air in a safe but fairly close distance from Kainé, causing her to look in the direction it came from.

In front of some odd construction, Emil was floating, evidently safe and sound, and waved one of his hands at her before pointing to first the small building behind him, then to a path that was visible where she stood. Kainé nodded and stepped back to grab their new things and Nier himself.

 

_\- Emil seems to have dealt with Gideon, one way or another. It seems like he saved Gideon, though. You’d prefer him alive, right?_

_\- It’d be sad if Emil had this much trouble simply because of how he looks, or had to kill someone in self-defense, but I’d understand it more than enough if he had to._

_\- Well, it appears the ‘optimal’ version happened instead. Let’s go._

 

Climbing up towards Gideon’s new defensive spot and hideout, Kainé pondered ways on how to make him get distracted enough for Turchesi and her robot to escape. Nier started.

\- _Gideon is still able to upgrade weapons, right? We should try getting him to make any weapon we’ve brought that we have the right materials for better, even if it seems Emil can do it to an extent, too. Do you have other ideas?_

_\- Yeah. Bringing him where his brother died. There may or may not be a certain thing left behind there, and I want to see if there will be._

_\- These two things should give Turchesi and her robot enough time to escape, right?_

_\- Pretty much, yeah. But I don’t know if we should upgrade Emil’s weapon yet… depends on how much heavier it’d be after something like that. We have to remember that only Emil knows how his body works, but only he does, so if there’s a risk the weapon will become harder to handle, it’ll just be not that useful to him, I guess._

_\- True. You’re really knowledgeable about fighting, Kainé._

_\- What did you think? I’ve spend most of my life fighting in one way or another. Even more so since we met. It’s not always just hack, hack, chop, chop, slash, slash. Sometimes, you’ve gotta try and do things in a way that are sure to keep your most important advantages, especially if you can’t plan ahead. Emil needs to float, move, and be able to switch that spear between his arms dexterously, so if its weight were to seriously increase with an upgrade, I’d discourage him from getting it. But then, we’d have to make him upgrade any weapons we may not actually use._

_\- Think he’d be able to make your blades any better?_

_\- Doubt it. Your own sword will probably be so expensive in materials we won’t have enough, but it’s worth checking. So we’ll upgrade the weapons that may not see much use if it’s cheap._

_\- There is a person by that hideout. I can see them now. So Gideon *is* alive… Guess we’ll have to do distract him after all._

_\- Well, with two ways of doing that…_

 

 

 

The inside of Gideon’s hideout still had a proper workplace for him, likely to make quick repairs or try and develop weapons on the spot for his efforts at battling robots.

Emil and Gideon proceeded to explain on short notice how Emil battling the Shade when it turned aggressive towards Gideon and his hideout and Emil identifying as ‘being with Kainé” made the latter remember something about the skeletal being, and Gideon decided Emil’s not a robot.

With that, Kainé decided to steer the conversation towards where she wanted it to go.

_\- Gideon, we’re going to need your help with two other things now._

_\- Those being?_

_\- You know an alternative path to where that robot killed your brother several years ago. I need to check that area one more time, or for you to tell me if you’ve found anything at all in there, presuming you visited that place. Other than that, the usual. We’d like for you to help us with upgrading a couple of weap…_

What Kainé saw on the wall of Gideon’s hideout gave her pause.

It was a sword. *That* sword. The enormous slab of iron, the weapon from her memory, intact and possibly used by Gideon when the time came, though he’d never be able to use it without mechanical help. That ridiculously heavy sword. She couldn’t recall just how powerful the blade was, but in terms of sheer damage, it definitely held its own no matter what sort of things she and the others found on their way.

So this was it. The weapon she thought was supposed to be hidden in Junk Heap. That one weapon she thought she should find here, was here.

 

This ultimately confirmed her suspicion. Granted her memories of Nier ever using that thing were fuzzy at best, but her recollection of Gideon lending and upgrading that weapon was a lively one purely because of the ridiculously huge size of the blade. Even now, fit as she was, she’d have no personal use for this kind of a weapon, and Nier was still short and physically weak, so taking it from Gideon was meaningless – the simple fact that “Iron Will” was here proved that her hunch and theory were right. The weapons Nier used and collected were returned to their ‘rightful’ places, places they’d be in if Nier and his companions never found them – although logically some of them might’ve been moved from their spots in the meantime, as three years have passed.

 

Therefore, her forgetting Nier, *everyone* forgetting Nier might’ve been the result of a plot, or a backlash from the Shadowlord, or even an intervention of some unknown power, but it definitely worked for more than *just* memories. If the pieces of the portal key were torn from her rather than just misplaced, and if Nier’s old weapons were all returned to places where he found them when Shadowlord was defeated, the power that accomplished this didn’t just alter memories, but to an extent reality itself.

 

Of course, she couldn’t be sure of that yet, nor did she understand anything about what happened back then, but at least she had a sound and sensible theory.

She had to shake back to the discussion as Nier seemingly finished convincing Gideon about weapon upgrading.

_\- … Fine, but this is the last time, and only because you killed robots and your skullfriend here saved me. Your friend seems like she lost her thought. Ah, you looking at my pride ain’t ya? Found this weapon completely torn apart, but I knew it was powerful so I repaired it with Memory Alloy. Voila! Still not as strong as it could be, though… It’d need relatively rare ingredients for upgrading it._

Kaine could honestly care less at this point, but at least Gideon was properly distracted and didn’t complain about what happened with his brother.  Emil seemed exasperated for a moment, but Kainé calmed him down as she saw the light blur of the book moving away, confirming Gideon’s attention was elsewhere, evidently.

_\- Well, okay then. Now let’s see. There are several weapons we think you could upgrade, but I want some specifics on what’d happen with the spear Emil’s carrying._

 

 

Gideon begun to inspect their weapons, checking the status of Emil’s spear first.

_\- Simple but good job. Would be best upgraded by putting some firepower into it. The light weight and construction helps with breaking down minor stuff and mixing it with iron to reinforce it._

_\- You’re saying that would make the weapon heavier, though._

_\- Yeah. In this case, with this make and energy type, the hitting power can be increased considerably by sacrificing some of that light weight. Don’t know if that’s what you want if you wanna keep the little guy using it, ueh he he…_

_\- No. Emil needs his weapon light, easy to switch inbetween hands and use, so for now, we’ll keep it as-is.  There’s no point in giving him something with high melee power if it’d slow him down. Nier, let him check that blade Emil gave you._

 

Presenting Gideon with the heavy one-handed sword he commonly used, and Gideon nodded.

_\- This one’s reached quite a high level already. If I wasted a whole lot of copper, rusted metal and other materials on it, there’s a chance it’s attack power would increase through bringing out the heat and fire in the sword’s elemental aura, and it’d sharpen the blade, but it’d require a *whole* lot of copper, some pyrite too…_

 

Kainé shook her head. So even Gideon believed that the weapon was close to its optimum after having been upgraded once by Emil… which meant not the entirety of work Nier put into these weapons on his way was wasted, most likely. Most weapons they brought them, Gideon and Jacob had two to three ideas on how to improve.

That was a hole in her theory, but it was the first one.

_\- Well, then. I think you should try upgrading the backup weapons we’ve found, and showing us to the path that leads to where we ‘killed’ that robot. I’ll take Emil, and Nier will stay behind in case more shades and robots arrive and to check your work._

 

While upgrading the two weapons appeared to be more expensive than it was worth, Kainé needed to give Gideon some work and she reasoned there might be an opportunity to sell those weapons for money later, so even such a ‘wasted’ investment wasn’t completely pointless. Plus, in case Nier needed a lighter sword, a spare one, upgrading that blade might prove useful. She herself intended to at least check the upgraded version of the spear-like weapon in combat later on, although its length and weight would make it unhandy for Nier to wield and its power when she found it was… Just a tad underwhelming.

She leaned in to whisper to Nier.

_\- Make sure he gets no chance to observe what’s going on outside. I let Emil in on what has happened in the meantime. Sorry for leaving you to do this._

_\- It’s fine._

 

Nier’s answer comforting her, purposefully extended the detour of Gideon leading them to the right corridor and pointing the way from his hideout to where they once battled the “Beepy” P-33 model robot.

 

When they were sure they came out of reach of the weapon-obsessed young man, Emil couldn’t hold back his curiosity.

_\- Kainé, you’ve seen it, right? It was a Grimoire, like…_

_\- Yeah. Yeah, I’ve seen it. It ain’t Weiss, though. The name’s Turchesi and it sounds like it’s a girl on the inside. We met it deep within the mountain and allied with us to battle a shade… which likely you had to take care of after we were done._

_\- Yes. I was… really worried for a moment out there. When it escaped with you nowhere in sight… It was powerful, too. I overdid things and risked destabilizing my magic again. If I tried fighting like this when it was at full strength, that might’ve happened._

_\- But it didn’t, and you would battle more cautiously if it wasn’t already noticeably weakened, right?_

 

 

Emil would probably smile at Kainé’s words of comfort and encouragement, if he had a proper mouth.

 _\- Right. Yes, I probably would. –_ he responded.

_\- Nevertheless… this Grimoire only knows a bit about Weiss and Noir, and claims she’s not in league with the latter or the Shades. Seeing how she didn’t mind us killing the shades deeper in the mountain, I’m inclined to believe that for now, but… her plan is odd._

_\- Can you explain?_

_\- She’s researching some person from way, way back. One that appeared when that event which forced humans of old to begin Project Gestalt started. I think she wants to either access as much information about a person that appeared with the original sources of magic as she can, or… maybe make a Replicant of them, if it’s at all possible. I don’t know. Sounds almost as ridiculous as actually reviving him. She also claims the blade you found and Nier is using appeared in this world with that person. I wouldn’t judge her as an ally or enemy yet, but she did help us obtain a lot of information on the topics that we’ve been researching. So much we’re going to have to do a whole lot of reading again. Now, she’s escaping with some important robot that can connect to old machines and use them thanks to some weird energy generation… Which makes me believe that the more time she spends out of our reach, the more dangerous she may be if she turns out to be an enemy. Nier seemed to trust her, though, and she was agreeable when it came to dancing around the truth on Gestalts and Replicants, though, so I accepted her deal and will let her go now._

_\- A lot has happened inside of that mountain when I was away…_

_\- Quite so. But there’s one more thing. One of the centers we’ll be looking at… is in the same area as Shadowlord’s Castle._

_\- We can’t go there yet. Nier still hasn’t build up the old strength, and even if he did, we’re actually weaker than we were back then without Weiss, and… and…_

_\- And without Tyrann. Yeah, I know, we’ll need a lot more preparation to get there. But this is only a prelude to a certain discovery I think I made._

_\- That being?_

_\- Remember when we thought that weird five-limbed Shade and Nier got a sword out of it? The one he claimed he’d seen in the past, Moonrise?_

_\- Yes?_

_\- The weapon Gideon has on his wall… was in our possession in the past as well. Specifically, in Nier’s._

_\- Then how is it… Wait, you have an idea on what might’ve happened?_

_\- Not *really*. But whatever happened, Emil, wasn’t just wiping mine, yours, Yonah’s, or even every single Replicant’s memory clean of him. It seems like the world itself was altered to an extent, making sure the signs that he existed were minimized. When I came back through that portal with Yonah, I no longer even had the full key to use it.  There was a piece, fourth out of five, just resting there right in our path when I came through. I never thought much about it… The entire memory is hella blurry in my head, but I’m still missing one piece of the key to the passage that lead to Shadowlord’s castle. And all of Nier’s weapons were seemingly returned to the places and areas he’s got them from, as if he never happened upon them. You get me?_

_\- Whatever caused us to forget about Nier also made it so things he accomplished in his life were… altered._

_\- Yes. I was the only person who was near him at the end, when it happened, so once I got out of that place and the door was closed again, the fragments of the key I could never have gotten on my own for some reason, or those out of creatures he himself struck down personally, disappeared.  And all of the weapons and items he gathered in his life disappeared as well, or rather, returned to their original positions. I’m going down there to check if the key fragment I’m missing if the one from Junk Heap, though I wouldn’t be able to tell why it could be the one from here… but first and foremost, I wanted to tell you what I discovered._

_\- It feels like such a huge mystery now, though. To not only alter people’s minds, but physical properties of the world itself to an extent…  Even if it was universally related to just one person, I don’t think magic like that is even possible. Not without some terrible price or drawback involved…_

_\- I don’t know that much about magic outside of what we’ve all been through, but yeah. Unless the thing that caused this was so above human, or even shade, levels that we can’t even comprehend it. Maybe it was some sort of suicidal final curse from the Shadowlord… but if that was the case, it’d seem more likely that I myself would’ve never returned. And instead… I came back only without Tyrann *or* Nier with me. But with Yonah… Whom was kidnapped by the Shades in the first place, so must’ve been related to their goals. Only we never understood how, and we know Shadowlord failed at doing what he tried to._

_\- What was the Shadowlord like, anyway? Did you get to any sort of reasonable expl…_

_\- The last thing I remember is Yonah on a bed, and some blurry words from Tyrann. At that point, literally everything is too chaotic or completely gone, and suddenly Yonah asks me if I was the one that saved her, the one that ‘defeated the Shadowlord’. I don’t even know what the goddamn guy’s looked like after those five years._

_\- So your and Yonah’s memories were extremely fuzzy when it came to the entire event…_

_\- Well, we did fight the Shade boss, she’s been captive for five years, and I had Tyrann pulled out of me. The only people who could explain the entire truth would have to be him and Nier himself, who was just… gone at that point. Even the details of how Weiss died are extra hard to remember. Maybe in time those memories will return or start making sense… or maybe they won’t, given that we’ve essentially put back the piece that whatever did that was trying to remove._

The duo reached the spot where some of the P-33 model robot still remained behind.

Kainé’s memories about the fight itself were fuzzy, but still inspired a cold sense of detachment in an effort to forget, to overcome the grim fact that they killed what was essentially a child by the request of a man who was already on a descent into madness.

 

Tyrann translating the words of Shades into something she could understand by virtue of them being joined always had her teetering on the brink of… something. She was just effective at blocking it all. At making death not seem like this big of a deal. In a situation with no good way out, helping out people important to you was the only right and proper way.

They searched through the room, but there was no piece of the Shadowlord’s key there.

_\- Well, I expected as much. We did need to get down there to check just in case, but mostly I wanted to give you some of the information on this new Grimoire and on what I found out. Plus, Nier and me had enough time alone. Can’t let you feel like you’re being left out, can I now?_

_\- I’m glad the three of us are back together like this. Sure, I miss Weiss, and I hope Yonah and I eventually remember Nier at least as good as you do, but…_

_\- But we have to make do with what we have. Which means we’re going to have quite the trouble if we ever enter Façade again._

_\- Damn the language differences._

_\- Or not. It’s not always good to understand what another says in a situation that’s bad and painful for them. Trust me on this._

_\- Shall we go back now?_

_\- Yeah. Let’s hope Nier succeeded. For the record… I don’t want to have to deal with Gideon again. So if you’ve become knowledgeable at upgrading stuff and mixing ingredients, we’re going to depend on you in the future, and if you don’t feel fully confident about that, it’s best if we find a new blacksmith or whatever._

_\- I’ll try my best, but I think someone professional would be better. Well, we didn’t come here to upgrade, anyway._

_\- True Enough. “Two Brothers Weaponry” is long gone. Now it’s just a … crazy brother._

 

 

 

On their return, Nier smiled, evidently relieved that they returned without a single wound on either of them and apparently because they managed to distract Gideon well enough with all these actions to get Turchesi and her robot to disappear from sight, and without any more attacks on Gideon, too.

The weapons were successfully upgraded, but as Kainé predicted, the spear they’ve obtained was simply too heavy for Nier to use effectively yet, being more or less as badly matched for his body as the long axelike weapon they’ve found in the laboratory under Emil’s mansion, and “Moonrise”, while lighter and thus possibly more suited to Nier than the blade he was using, simply lacked the hitting power and an extreme enough difference in easiness to swing to justify exchanging these two swords, even after Gideon’s work on them. It was possible all of these weapons could be upgraded at least one more time, though. The group tried to not take too long saying their goodbyes to the robot-obsessed young man, and Kainé made a decision to try out the weapon from Nier’s basement as well as the spear they just obtained in actual battle, and then looked at Iron Will one last time.

 

For a moment, she considered taking the apparently powerful blade with them.  But the only person she ever saw swing that sword would’ve been Nier. The same Nier who’s got to grow to be quite a bit taller than her, the same Nier who butchered countless shades across five years she’s been petrified, the same Nier who was able to go toe to toe with the Shadowlord and win, the Nier that overcame every challenge and obstacle despite being manipulated…

And she didn’t know how well could *he* use that blade. Looking at that massive slab of iron, Kainé decided she was going to do her best to not let Nier turn out the same way, to not force him to grow into a person able to use that massive weapon in a fight. She decided she was going to try and give him a more peaceful, enjoyable life before he ages five years again and becomes tall and physically strong enough to start swinging that thing…

 

And thus, in the memories of the world, it will remain a weapon that was never really used by an unsupported fighter. By a swordsman without machinery to support him.

And that was all right. Some weapons just weren’t meant to have a history.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Emil, Nier, and Kainé knew quite well travelling back to Emil’s mansion was going to take them at least a couple of days with all the additional baggage to take with them, but at least they’ve had plenty of information and targets now. However, this deemed one more question something that required an answer.

Nier turned to  both of his companions, pondering on if this was the right time.

_\- You said that eventually I’d be the one to check if there’s any useful weapons back at my hometown, and that I’d need to do it alone because neither of you would be welcome there anymore._

_\- Yeah. But if you go there, you should probably be prepared to see a grim image, Nier. And you may not be welcome either if people even recognize you. It’s been four years after all, but your body hasn’t changed one bit. If anything, that’d get some people a little suspicious about you. And I don’t think I have to remind you Devola and Popola are not around to take care of the citizens anymore, so their life might’ve gotten more difficult._

_\- I know._

 

Emil decided to suggest something.

_\- Maybe just wear some sort of a hood or something. I mean, the townsfolk might be unfriendly even to you if they were annoyed with Yonah no longer being infected with Black Scrawl, and if Kainé really can’t hang around there anymore._

_\- I can try doing that, but that’s a lot of versions of what may have happened, though. I kind of just wish people turned out to be fine…_

 

Kainé and Emil looked at each other. Nier’s visit to his hometown not going well would mean their version of the story could collapse in but a moment. But they couldn’t stop him from doing it forever; in fact, stopping him might’ve meant him all the more determined to visit later on his own.

\- We’ll encircle the town and wait on the other side, then. You go in, buy the weapons if they seem to be of any use… try to just see if anyone you’d actually care is doing fine without bothering them. If there’s any decent or easy to keep food, you can buy it as well. Remember your old house has been bought so don’t hang around there for too long.  Now, we still need to get your sister some money for her own troubles, so I didn’t take all that much with me. Twenty four thousand gold, roughly a third of what I’ve had remaining. We’re going to need jobs soon if we keep spending at this rate, but if you find a decent weapon don’t be afraid to buy it.

_\- All right. It’s fine if I go then?_

_\- Sure. Just make sure to not be too obvious about who you are._

 

Nier quickly covered his head and face with one of the pieces of cloth he got from Emil’s house and wondered off towards his old village.

_\- So… if we’re correct, literally no one would remember him even if he was to reveal his face._

_\- Yeah. Which is why we want to create an illusion that they’re not recognizing his face because he’s hiding it._

 

Kainé’s relative tiredness from the long travel managed to make her forget one important detail that would be problematic if nothing changed in that regard at the blacksmith’s place in Nier’s hometown.

 

It’d be the one place where he’d perfectly remember what sort of weapons the blacksmith had the last time he visited. Including the ones he bought himself.

They just went on their way, trying to stay close enough to the village and having it in sights in order to come to Nier’s aid if anything went wrong, but mostly attempting to pass it without being noticed. Emil floating at just the right height to observe what was happening.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not half an hour later, inside of Nier’s hometown…

 

It didn’t change that much. The houses were emptier. The town’s noise didn’t have Devola’s music added onto it. There were significantly less sounds of kids playing, as if no new ones appeared or grew up to the point of playing around since he left. Or at least, not enough kids were brought up to substitute in for those who grew to old to play around.

 

But the people… the people were different. More weary, more old-looking, and more bandaged, patched up, and covered in various spots. Why? There was an obvious and unmistakable reason why, and it made sense why the town appeared poorer than when he left it. When someone didn’t cover it or it wasn’t covered enough, Nier could visibly see the signs of the same illness that plagued his little sister on the skin of many others. It felt like the illness touched about half of the town already, and the afflicted people were all restless, irritable, and hurting.  

 

Those were people Nier knew, at least some of them. And now, because of those who have been leading them for so long coming up against his friends, because of Devola’s and Popola’s actions, curing their ailment was impossible if what Turchesi, Emil and Kainé told him was true.

 

People didn’t seem to pay much notice to him much less recognize him, so he just quietly made his way to the blacksmith’s stand. He’d never seen the man so nervous, restless, and malnourished, but he didn’t appear to have the Black Scrawl yet, and unlike others scanned Nier thoroughly.

_\- A warrior kid, huh… what kind of times are we in for someone like you to have to pick up the sword…_

 

That was weird. An odd thing for a man who lived in this village for years to be worried about, to say the least.

[“After all… you’ve had a kid my age who picked up the sword for many days a year for about two years living in your village…”]

_\- I don’t know if the weapons I can offer as the remaining ones are all right for someone like you, though. The blade you’re using seems solid and already plenty heavy enough._

_\- I can use it. I’d like to take a look at all of the high-quality weapons you have, since I could buy some for myself as back-up weapons or to exchange this sword for… Or for my friends. One of them is a lot taller and stronger than me so it’s possible even the heavier of your weapons could find a use._

_\- Ah, alrighty then. I got an improved spear from the far away Façade here but both it and an axe of mine sold out soon after the number of shades started increasing, so I only have a couple of weapons remaining. Feel free to take a look, though._

 

And taking a look was exactly what Nier did.

It was a stunning enough thing to see that large, heavy weapon he couldn’t quite afford four years ago in here, but planned to buy once he returned from the Forest of Myth… The Beast-something, he believed the blacksmith nicknamed it back then…

 

But to see the Lily-Leaf sword, one of the first weapons he could afford buying and, if he remembered correctly, the first one he upgraded at Two Brothers’ Weaponry back here, back where he first bought it, evidently bearing the signs of the upgrade Jacob made, inbetween it and a relatively small and light-looking (for that kind of weapon, at least) two handed sword…

That got him both curious and a little disturbed at a familiar weapon once more coming up this close to where he originally got it.

 

 

 

 

 


	10. 3b - Home and Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Going back through his home village, Nier encounters more and more little reminders of past events - both those relating to him and those only seemingly relating to his friends and family. A talk with his sister puts him in a position where he's starting to consider his feelings...

It was a really odd feeling to be seeing the weapon Nier was quite accustomed to *using* not long ago – for him, that is, as he’s been told four years have passed since he actually used it – placed right there in a weapon rack, right in front of him and surrounded by several daggers, short sword, regular blades similar to the one he had when Yonah got lost and taken to the Lost Shrine, Beastbain, which seems to be too expensive for most people to buy and as such made some sense to still be there, and an odd, practically devoid of guard at the base of the blade, relatively light-looking, sword with a long handle, evidently meant for two-handed usage.

Nier would never learn that blade, too, was once his own. He’d never learn of the surprise Yonah felt when she returned home and inherited from someone who’s been using it in the meantime a sword and a spear – a standard issue spear in the far-off Façade, though she couldn’t know that. Selling these two weapons helped her pull along at first, though she believed Kainé would help her if it was necessary.

_\- Excuse me, mister blacksmith?_

_\- Yeah?_

_\- A couple of year back I bought a very similar looking blade from y… - Nier caught himself almost revealing his identity - where was it again… Nevertheless, this sword looks just like a blade I tried using quite a while ago…_

_\- Well, you know what it’s like, kid. When a blade breaks or it is sold at one spot, sometimes a blacksmith reproduces it and puts it back into motion, or just repairs it when people bring him the pieces for a small pay and sells it as his own. Or it’s sold at a different blacksmith’s place. Though, you look too young to have ever used that particular sword…_

_\- Really? How long did you have it for?_

_\- Oh, there’s no way I’d remember. Years, probably?_

_\- Oh. Years. I see. Well, that may make sense… that it can’t be mine then, I mean. Anyway, what would be the prices of those three weapons?_

_-Hmm. I kept the small sword at 2400. The large one-handed blade… 16600, and six and a half thousand for the two handed blade._

 

Nier pondered a moment.

_\- I only have twenty four thousand, so I’m going to have to choose…_

_\- Wait, you were going to try to buy them all if you could?_

_\- Well, those prices aren’t that high compared to other towns, are they? It somehow feels like weapon prices increased._

_\- Yes. Some salesmen put higher prices on their best weapons these days for various reasons, most important one being that many more people have a use for them these days._

_\- But your prices seem… fairly low. Which is why I considered buying all three and trying to sell the surplus later if it didn’t seem useful…_

_\- Most people won’t buy used weapons or weapons that come from someone who’s not a professional blacksmith or tradesman at full price, though._

_\- I’m aware of that… But there are some opportunities, and…_

_\- Tell you what, kid. I… don’t want to be in this city anymore. The business isn’t good because ironically a period that later caused us much unrest ended up with shades almost instinctively avoiding this city now, so not many people buy higher-end weapons and I’m not having much luck selling anything here anymore. I’ll sell you all three for twenty four thousand. This should be enough to let me move elsewhere. This town… the number of people suffering from Black Scrawl makes everyone paranoid about infection. I’m lucky to still be healthy… and even if it’s not possible to get it from another, this is no longer a good place to live in. It’s like this place has lost its soul, and all the most capable people are now gone. So if you want all three for twenty four thousand, you can have them, and may the gods bless you, kid._

_\- Well, they’re already cheap and you’re pretty much offering a discount on all of them, so yes. I’ll take all three. There’s something I’m curious of about the small blade, anyway._

_\- Very well. Twenty four thousand and they’re yours._

 

Passing the money to the blacksmith, Nier realized he’s going to have some trouble moving back with weapons that weight this much with nothing but his back to carry them on, but he was able to decently drag them along the way to the town exit.

That is, until he bumped into a person, making them both fall and revealing Nier’s face to the stranger. It was not actually a stranger…

Just before he visited the Forest of Myth, Nier spent quite a lot of time chasing this person down. The odd-looking hat and their features were unmistakable : The runaway son of the man who lived not far away from the blacksmith’s place.

_\- Watch where you’re going, kid, dammn… Wow, you look just like her._

 

Nier felt a little weird about a person who gave him *this* much trouble not recognizing him and instead comparing him to a girl of all things.

_\- Just like… who, exactly?_

_\- A girl lived here. When she returned healed of Black Scrawl just when everyone else was starting to get it, she didn’t turn out to be very popular here._

_\- … Was her name Yonah?_

_\- I think so. You… do you know her. Family, perhaps? Well, if she had any family she probably moved in with them already, or they’d visit her more often rather than making her live for so long in this odd house all alone. Yeah, you look like a girl who I think was named Yonah, so may as well stop acting all cocky dragging all this heavy stuff around on your own. Not that folks would be that eager to help someone who looked like her._

 

Nier grit his teeth. This person didn’t recognize him, and spoke so bad of Yonah… in fact, suggesting the entire town disliked her after she returned cured of the Black Scrawl. A lot of the stuff he was saying was confusing, but would make sense if she lived alone in this place for a while.

_\- Sorry about that. I’ll get going now._

_\- Yeah, get going before someone makes fun of you dragging these things, girly boy._

 

[“Deep breath in. Breathe out. He’s a brat and nothing more. At least I helped out the local blacksmith sell his most expensive weapons so he can move on to other places. Just how many people here are infected with the Black Scrawl? How fast did that illness spread, and why do they blame Yonah? Was I mistaken about people here? Are they really so close-minded and selfish?”]

Nier lacked the memories about the five years that passed when Kainé was petrified and what happened just after. If he had them, he’d realize that the townsfolk weren’t always exactly kind.

Not that he needed that much proof to know humans weren’t always kind. His life showed it in and of itself quite well.

He just wished the kid he saved so long ago recognized him, showed some gratitude, and didn’t say things that made it more confusing and harder to go on.

 

 

 

Minutes later, out of the town.

 

_\- That surely took you long enooo… NIER HOW THE HELL DID YOU END UP BUYING NOTHING BUT WEAPONS? WHY THREE OF THEM ANYWAY!?_

_\- The blacksmith, he… wanted to leave the town. Offered me one and a half thousand discount if I bought all three, and I think they could be useful. Beastbain seems like a great weapon, and…_

 

Nier slowly unveiled the Lily-Leaf Sword. Kainé was stunned and wanted to smack herself over allowing him to come into contact with a weapon he himself used back then, one that was fresh in his memory.

[“HOW THE HELL DOES THIS BLACKSMITH STILL HAVE IT AFTER OVER THREE YEARS?”]

_\- This sword… it looks and feels exactly the same as the one I upgraded and fought with in Façade. You remember it, Kainé? I think there’s a story how a beautiful woman once carried it._

 

[“And now he’s flirting with me?!”]

_\- The blacksmith claimed he’s had it for years, though, and that I’m too young to ever have had it, even though he sold it to me by himself. That felt quite weird, to be honest. Everyone looks so much older and more weary than I remember them, too._

[“And now he perceives story paradoxes. Not good. Not good.”]

This time, Emil came to the rescue.

_\- Nier, you’ve had that sword with you when you went to the Forest of Myth, didn’t you?_

_\- Yes! I carried it with me and gathered money to buy Beastbain even back then._

_\- Then this sword came into the hands of Devola and Popola when their plan succeeded. They could’ve returned it to the blacksmith and make him think he never sold that particular one. With the kind of magic they’ve had, it’s possible._

 

Kainé wanted to sigh in relief, but couldn’t afford to.

[“Thanks, Emil.”]

_\- Anyway, that explains this sword, buying it as a backup and out of sentimentality… although it feels like the upgraded Moonrise is actually better…_

She then grabbed the Beastbain sword. Lifting it with ease, she tried to recall if she saw that particular sword in the past, before hacking the air with it some and chopping some bush nearby to test it.

_\- I’d say it’s really close to the sword you’re using now, Nier. With upgrades, it could be a lot better. It was a good decision to buy it, but… How much exactly did you spend?_

_\- All of it. 24 000 for all three weapons._

_\- … Okay…_

_\- I’m sorry, Kainé. The blacksmith’s a decent person. I wanted to help him out if I could._

_\- Riiight… What’s the third weapon?_

_\- It’s a two-handed sword. It’s quite light for one, though, so I thought you and I could try practicing fighting with two-handed weapons together when we return._

_\- Sure. Now, let’s pack these with our tons of paper and get going. We’re definitely going to need to find some jobs to do after that, especially if we’re to give Yonah any significant amount to go by…_

 

Turning around, there was a townsperson moving back towards the town proper… only said man saw them, and was now definitely moving in their direction.

_\- I knew it. I knew it I knew it. I think humanity should start some sort of cautionary movement against white-haired people. You’re the woman that brought her back… That brought Yonah back, suddenly all healthy and ‘safe’. Pshhh._

 

Emil, Kainé, and Nier all pretty much simultaneously said the same thing.

_\- Excuse me?_

_\- You’ve heard me. Bringing back one of the first people who suffered From Black Scrawl here, suddenly ‘healed’ of it… With Popola and Devola gone. And then, no more than ten months after you brought her, one out of every four or five people in town already had Black Scrawl like a goddamn epidemic, even though they’ve shown none of it beforehand. Coincidence, my ass. Witchcraft is what it is! You two performed some crazy witchcraft to hide you Shade from our eyes and make her a carrier rather than an actually infected one._

_\- You realize you’re talking some pretty insane shit there._

_\- Quite a couple citizens knew what you were, you freaky bitch. And no one will convince me so many people getting Black Scrawl’s a coincidence. Almost half of the town has it now. How do you explain that, eh? Not to mention that rumour’s that’s been circulating ever since you left, back when that young guard officer died…_

_\- Rumor?_

 

Nier seemed interested. Emil was just worried, and Kainé certainly wasn’t going to listen to this bullshit anymore. For a moment, she had a hand on her blade, but decided this person wasn’t worth the effort, or adding onto her crimes.

_\- What, kid, you don’t even know what kind of filthy freak you’re traveling with? People say that when that guardsman died in the shade attack, his s…_

 

The man’s reaction time was far too slow to even stop talking when Kainé introduced him to one of her legendary leaps, the woman’s knee hitting him right in the abdomen and causing him to keel over in pain. With a single, measured punch to the back of his head, he was down for the count, knocked out and unable to say anything more.

_\- Save their asses time and time again, keep watch out for Shades for them time and time again, and they’re gonna tell you a twelve year old girl is responsible for a fucking Black Scrawl epidemic. Then they’re going to start some shitty, nasty rumors about you after you save their asses *yet again*. I guess some people really are worse than trash._

_\- Kainé, what was he talking about anyway?_

_\- It doesn’t matter. This nasty rumor is the reason why I can’t get back to your town anyway. Are you satisfied with what you’ve found? We have no more reason to visit that place if the blacksmith’s gonna move, so for me it’s actually better that you bought all of his expensive weapons out._

 

Emil placed one of his hands on Nier’s shoulder, and shook his head.

It was evident whatever event caused Kainé to believe she wouldn’t be welcome at Nier’s home town anymore, she’d do her best to take the secret to the grave, and evidently not even all of the townsfolk would share that knowledge with them – especially now that they’ve seen what happened when someone spewed things out of their mouth excessively.

 

 

 

 

At Emil’s Mansion, much, much later.

 

About twenty days have passed since the group had encountered Grimoire Turchesi.

Every four days after their return to the mansion, Emil, sometimes together with either of them, wrote a letter to Yonah, sending her minor amounts of money together with it.

 

The group held a small celebration in Emil’s house, too, once they realized over thirty days in total passed since they started traveling together.

In total, three thousand were send by letters alone while the group spread their duties between three  major outlets for a little over two weeks they’ve had since they managed to return to Emil’s Mansion.

First one was training. Nier was trying to become better and start getting acquainted with weapons other than one-handed swords, practicing with Emil’s spear and the sword he bought from the blacksmith in his home town. Kainé’s training efforts were focusing a little more on polearm combat, although she also practiced her two swords style and used the axe-like weapon from Emil’s basement, which she was the only one in the group strong enough to use for now.

 

Second was working. With Seafront so close nearby, Emil, Nier, and Kainé had plenty of work that needed to be done. Killing some animals, some shades, escorting small groups as they went about obtaining things, and bringing in some rare materials for the locals.

 

It was relatively effective work. Spreading the funds they’ve earned almost equally, with a slightly greater cut for Kainé as she seemed to be the one making all the big investments until now, they’ve accumulated thirty two thousand in the local currency. She insisted on Nier and Emil taking at least ten thousand each as she got the rest, and then Emil and Nier gave half of what they’ve obtained to be delivered to Yonah. Kainé just matched their gift. The final donation for Nier’s sister would be fifteen thousand, and the total would come to be around eighteen. It wasn’t enough to buy any extremely high-quality weapons or a new house, but was decidedly enough for the girl to survive on while she looked for ways to support herself. Kainé said, if need be, they could always donate more, but flooding Yonah with money from relative strangers would likely make the girl uncomfortable and depressed.

 

Finally, they spend a whole lot of time simply mewling over the information they managed to obtain thanks to their meeting with Turchesi in Junk Heap.

And there was a lot of it.

Kainé already decided that they were not going to check the path leading from the Lost Shrine until they’ve gotten what they wanted from other available places, and until she felt they were prepared, but did make finding the last part of the Key something of a priority, which to her meant the needed to visit Façade and the ruins of Aerie – as the Forest of Myth could no longer hide such a piece and they would’ve found it the last time they were there.

She was aware, of course, that without Weiss they might’ve had to use the translating device to properly communicate with the locals, although she had some hope in Emil being able to learn their language with some magic trick, too.

 

Other than that, there were two facilities they have marked reasonably close enough to justify going to them early on. One was a medical facility, and as it was a little further – and Kainé was the only one who fully knew why this facility was marked on their maps, having given the specific request – it was deemed it’d be the second one they visit after one that was apparently related to what could’ve helped them with recovering memories of other people – Yonah, by designation. It appeared they might be visiting around five different places before they almost run out of options other than visiting the general area where they met the Shadowlord, not counting anything else they might end up discovering thanks to these visits.

 

 

 

 

With this, the unavoidable had to finally happen. Someone had to deliver the money they’ve intended to give Yonah, as sending it by mail was far too risky. It was one thing to send a couple hundred, and another to  give fifteen thousand gold for a stranger to deliver to another stranger.

At Nier’s request, the group didn’t go there in the entire squad. Kainé insisted on accompanying him past the gates of the mansion, where they happened upon a – easily killable by now – giant spider, and continued for a short while towards Seafront.

_\- Kainé?_

_\- Yeah?_

_\- When we save up enough money, I think we ought to invest into getting some more serious armor after all. These shades… they aren’t a joke anymore._

_\- Mhm. Maybe when we go to Façade, we can get something high-quality, but we should spend some money on basic armor here at Seafront indeed, perhaps._

_\- I meant you as well._

_\- Mhm._

_\- Wait, you agree?_

_\- Possibly. Maybe. We’ll see. But I think my reason for avoiding getting more heavily-clothed is slowly dissipating. It was a little bit of a paradox at times in the first place. Nier?_

_\- Yeah?_

_\- Make sure you don’t say or do anything dumb to Yonah, will you? I don’t know everything about how your relationship with each other was before, but… you *can’t* miraculously recover her memories in a single leap of faith._

_\- I know that. I’m not a kid anymore._

_\- Neither is she. You’ll have to return alone, too. How’s your swordarm?_

_\- Good. It’s gotten completely used to the blade’s weight, and my timing has improved, too._

_\- Emil’s researching on how we can improve Beastbain, too. It wields a little differently but the overall weight is similar, so switching between the two should be relatively easy. The stronger weapons we can get for you, the better._

_\- Kainé?_

_\- What is it?_

_\- Do you think we’ll ever be able to recover Yonah’s memory enough for her to live with us? All four of us, together?_

_\- I can’t tell. I don’t really have an opinion on that yet. Wait until we check some of these facilities before you ask me that. Right now, we can only have faith._

_\- But do you think we should have faith?_

_\- Once a person grows important enough for you, they can’t just completely disappear from inside of you. So yeah, I do. Although it’s a grim world so holding on to a fool’s hope might be a little silly._

 

Over halfway to Seafront, Kainé decided it was finally enough escorting. Whatever happened from that point was about Nier and Yonah. She wasn’t sure if letting them meet alone after all this time was a good idea or if it should be done, but at the same time she believed Nier already grew fond of her and Emil enough to not drop everything if Yonah said one thing that would confuse him or make him think he could “repair” her.

Whatever was on the horizon, be it something caused by the Shades or by something else – even grimoires like Turchesi, or the grimoire who aided them herself… The swordswoman knew quite enough that no matter how tempting it was, she shouldn’t – couldn’t – monopolize Nier.

Getting him back might’ve been a miracle she and Emil accomplished, but that miracle would’ve meant nothing if she didn’t give Nier the free will and chances to be happy in his own way.

 

Slowly, the grim shades that veiled her thoughts and conscience during those past three and a half years were passing. And something inside was strongly telling her that this sort of altruism wasn’t meaningless for her, even if she wasn’t a ‘human’ with a ‘soul’.

 

 

 

Nier had to knock but once for the door to slowly open, the blue eyes of his younger sibling – nobody would believe she was younger, anyway, she looked more like his early-blooming twin now – looked at him through the gap in the door.

_\- Mister… Mister Nier. Thank you for your letters and the…the money. It takes care of most of the food expenses for one person, honestly._

_\- That was from Kainé. Today, I bring a little bit from all of us._

_\- You shouldn’t have, really. I can’t accept it…_

_\- Don’t be silly. You and Kainé were through a lot together, and now this pays up by you having more friends than just her._

_\- Please, come in._

 

Invited inside, Nier took several steps into her house. It was smaller than the one they shared in his hometown, which made sense, as there was only one person there – although thoughts of a boyfriend passed Nier’s thoughts momentarily before he shook them off.  Yonah continued talking.

_\- Both you and mister Emil seem like very kind and brave people, so I’d understand why Lady Kainé considers you two important friends. It’s great that a group of three people like that would interact with me and try to help me, but I feel like I’m already very indebted to you, so please don’t bother yourselves with excessively aiding me anymore, all right?_

_\- I can pass that information, but I’m honestly doubtful of whether any of them will listen. One way or another, I insist you accept this last gift at least to get you fully on your feet after you moving from your hometown. I can only imagine how… how hard it must’ve been for you to do that after so many years._

 

Yonah’s eyebrows raised as she accepted the two gold-filled sacs from Nier, gasping at how heavy they seemed.

_\- T-that’s ridiculous! Just how much money is in here?_

_\- We’ve decided to get you a little less than half what we earned, so everyone put five thousand gold in for your sake._

_\- F-fifteen thousand? I…_

_\- You can buy yourself at least one exclusive meal with that before using it as a fallback fund, which was the idea. Like I said, I won’t accept a refusal._

 

 

Yonah pondered something for a moment before looking down on Nier. He was lightly shorter than her, although a careful observer would’ve noticed that the difference was a bit smaller than it was when they first met after his return.

_\- It’s not true what you just said, is it?_

_\- No, really. Each and every one of us gave fi…_

_\- No, before. About… imagining. That you can only imagine how it felt for me to stop living in a place I called my home. Back when we first met, you seemed really concerned about a girl my age living here as well. For some reason… I could tell. You know about how I feel, and you feel like there’s a lot of risks living like this. I am grateful for your care, Mr Nier._

_\- I… Suppose that’s right. Thought there’s no way you’d encounter exactly the same problem as I did, I can understand what it’s like to live… alone, at around your age, only to then no longer feel welcome at the place that used to be your home. So I want to do my best to help._

_\- How kind… I’m really glad Lady Kainé has someone like that at her side. It seems like she could use some of the kindness…She cried before she got me back home, so I’m sure something hurt her, but she wouldn’t explain._

 

Nier would normally curiously question Yonah about what was happening with Kainé and why’d she was the one bringing her home, but decided not only the girl’s altered memory wouldn’t be of much help to him, there was also a more important thing to settle on.

 _\- You as well. –_ He finally said.

_\- I’m sorry?_

_\- It’s not just Kainé. From now on, I’ll be doing my best to help you as well. Even if, once again, I can’t always be at the side of every person I want to or should of, I want you to call me kind and think of me highly for things I’ve done for you, too._

 

Yonah blushed lightly. But she seemed quite a bit more mature than he remembered.

_\- Oh… oh my. So you really are… quite knightly. Appropriate for her, but a dream of most girls. Hehe._

 

The last giggle made Nier feel rather awkward, forcing Yonah to proceed to explain.

_\- Back when we first met, I kind of felt like you were not at all… out of place, somehow. It’s a bit of an embarrassing way to put it, but I felt it was like you’re out of a dream. It’s a little funny as well, because… well, there’s a boy my age always standing at Lady Kainé’s side now. One whose hair look a lot like mine and whose eyes are the same color as mine. I feel almost like I dreamt out the perfect knight to stand at Lady Kainé’s side, but now that ‘perfect knight’ is taking notice of me as well. I’m not sure what to feel other than being flattered… and a little happy, perhaps._

 

It was Nier’s turn to blush a dark red. This conversation was definitely starting to sound a little weird to him. It was like Yonah was either idolizing or crushing on him, Kainé, or both, and none of these options he was fully comfortable with.

_\- Mister Nier?_

_\- I’m just a human, okay? A normal person. Nobody dreamt me up and I’m certainly not a perfect knight of any kind. I was barely putting it together a little more than a year ago and if it wasn’t for Kainé, I wouldn’t even be around. So, it’ll take a long time before the person you might’ve dreamt up as a ‘perfect knight’ actually stands by her side._

_\- Don’t sell yourself too short. I wouldn’t say you felt like you’re out of a dream if you weren’t something special yourself. I’m sure being by Lady Kainé’s side, with all her strength and accomplishments, doesn’t make it easy to feel a lot of pride in your own achievements and virtues, but if someone like her wants you by her side I’m sure you have a lot of value. Would you like some tea?_

_\- Y…yes. Gladly._

_\- Sit down, please._

 

The inside of the house wasn’t very decorated, but it was charming in its simplicity. Sitting down on one of only three chairs by a single table, Nier nervously expected his sister’s return. Out of all the things to happen and all the feelings he guessed he’d have coming up from spending time with his sister after trying to save her all this while and being separated from her for almost four years – he had no idea it really has been almost nine, with just two short meetings in the meantime – he wasn’t expected to be so awkward and embarrassed at the way she talked or carried herself.

Yonah was pretty, but somehow her speaking so highly and with such fascination about both Kainé and her companions was making her appear… radiant.

He wouldn’t notice that if they were still proper siblings, but on Yonah’s side, this connection didn’t register, and as such it was just a little blurred for him as well. The last time he saw Yonah, she was at least twenty centimeters shorter than she was now, and looked like a preteen would, rather than a young woman would. For him, it was clear – no matter how much he cared for, tried for and sacrificed for Yonah, his reward already came to him in form of the girl’s familial love, and it was the only love he ever wanted from her, even if Kainé occasionally teased him otherwise. Something about that radiance and her emotions were making him feel awkward around her, though, and he had no idea *why*. Was he confused because it felt like Yonah was feeling romantic about him? Or jealous because it seemed she might’ve had some feelings for Kainé? If it was the latter, was he jealous and protective of his little sister’s heart…

Or was he jealous because it turned out there was a person loving his companion, who saved him, who said this many words with teasing undertones to him, and there was nothing he could do about it?

No two siblings should be rivals in this sort of field after all…

 

Before Nier managed to completely admonish himself for letting his thoughts turn to matters of love or romance – something his previous ‘replicant incarnation’, the one that originally protected Yonah and adventured with Nier, never had time or mind to turn to.

 

 

Yonah came back with the tea, settling two cups at either end of the table, and looking at Nier seriously.

_\- Although, thinking about it, it does present a little bit of a problem…_

_\- Hmm?_ – Nier asked, bringing the cup up to sip from it, but setting it down as the tea was still a little too hot.

_\- I mean, if you set a knight on an adventure with a lady as beautiful and strong as Lady Kainé, there’s no way they’ll remain oblivious to one another’s strong points, right? Things like camaraderie and  bravery for one another’s sake probably easily turn to affection and romance in circumstances like these. That’s… a problem._

 

Now that was almost terrible.

[“… NOW YOU PRETTY MUCH SAY TO MY FACE YOU DON’T WANT US TO BE TOGETHER? Just… you’re crushing on Kainé, right, Yonah? But… she’s a woman… well, then again, there’s been some couples like this from time to time. And she has… that…”]

_\- I don’t know what you’re talking about. In the heat of a battle…_

_\- Mister Nier, have you ever kissed someone? O...or spend a night with someone? I don’t specifically mind if it’s the two of you, given the circumstances and sentiment I expressed before, but it’ll be really problematic and unfair if Lady Kainé was your first kiss, or first… something else. I hear these things really bring people together and make it hard to forget a relation in which they…_

_\- It was nowhere near what you seem to be imagining for me. Nowhere near so bonding and nowhere near so pure and pretty. But… Those are already past me._

 

Yonah’s eyes narrowed a bit and her lips pursed to the side.

_\- I see… just to be sure, Lady Kainé wasn’t the o…_

_\- No. Please… don’t ask about those things anymore, will you? For some reason, it makes me really embarrassed talking about this with you._

_\- I see. I understand. Well, at least I learned something important. Thank you for all you’re doing for me, mister Nier. I wish there was some way I could properly express my gratitude to you and to Lady Kainé as well…_

[“This manner of speech… There’s no mistaking it. Yonah’s thoughts on those matters aren’t exactly pure. Well, she’s been growing up, and didn’t go through what I did… but, according to what Kainé said, she’s more or less… eleven? That’s way too early for her to develop crushes! I won’t allow it, but right now… I can’t really stay around with her alone any longer. I’ll say something confusing or terrible. Or worse, if the crush’s on me, or the worst of all, both on me *and* Kainé, I’ll end up being entangled in something really bad. And then, Kainé won’t ever let me hear the end of it, even if she forgives me.”]

_\- Mister Nier? You’ve gotten quiet?_

 

He started to quickly drink his tea.

_\- The best way you can express your gratitude is by doing what you can to be able to pay any debt you have with us or anyone else. We’ll never demand any such payment from you because we wall care for you and want you to be happy and live as carefree as possible. BUT. At the same time. We need to let you grow to be your own person, and as such, you should strive to do the best you can do. You’re free now, Yonah. No illness to die you down and nobody holding you back. So as long as you put in effort, even if it isn’t being a “knight” or a “lady” that can battle Shades and other dangers every day, you’ll be able to call yourself quite exceptional and great as well._

 

Finishing his tea while Yonah seemed shocked by his words and pondering, Nier stood up.

 

 

 

 

At Emil’s mansion.

_\- Are you worried he’s going to learn something he shouldn’t, Kainé?_

_\- It depends. I mean, it is clear that keeping him innocent about what’s been happening won’t be as easy as we hoped, and that we’re hardly masters of manipulation especially when we just want him to be happy, but… Even him losing that innocence could be worth it if we gain something more important and special in return. None of us would be here if not for Yonah, so they deserve to spend time together. It’s as simple as that._

_\- I guess that’s true. Kainé?_

_\- Yeah?_

_\- Are you jaded about spending money on weapons that belonged to Nier in the first place?_

 

Kainé laughed at that.

_\- A little bit, yeah._

_\- I can… only barely recall. When you spend five years petrified, he came here with those weapons. Beastbain as a one handed sword. The very blade he bought today as a two-handed weapon he’s been using. And a spear that looked like the one they use in Façade._

_\- Another point you remembered?_

_\- N…no. I couldn’t see him exactly the way he was when he came in, you know? I do recall the first time ever I’ve seen him, without the risk of him being petrified, though. And two of the three weapons he carried were the same ones he bought today._

_\- Well… that sucks. But it means we were right. Beastbain may be the strongest weapon he could find before you got petrified, so it’s likely quite a piece of work._

_\- Yeah. It feels like it’d need some very specific alterations though. Gideon would probably upgrade it by pushing it through a machine with a small mountain of iron, reinforcing it and sharpening back up again, and then maybe altering it with some other substances, but just maybe we’ll be able to find a blacksmith who can do that for us without having to visit him again… or without risking me doing it._

_\- But, as-is, it’s weaker than the sword Nier’s using._

_\- Yeah. Plus, Nier’s sword has a proper guard and a more traditional spread of mass. Maybe it’s better to actually make him stick to it until we find something more suited for him._

_\- Well, we’ll see. If we’re visiting Façade for sure, there may be someone in there able to upgrade these weapons._

_\- I’d say it depends on how well the recovered from their king dying… He’d dead, isn’t he?_

 

Kainé sighed. Come to think of it, they didn’t speak of it so far.

_\- Yeah. They managed to take down the shade we fought, but their wounds were too grevious. The King, his advisor, and every single soldier they brought in died._

_\- … It really is said if you think that him and Fyra…_

_\- It doesn’t matter anymore, Emil. Their feelings for each other before they passed away, that’s what matters._

_\- You’re right. Even Devola and Popola realized it at the end._

_\- Well… I am scared to go there and see if they’re pulling through. But they have traditions, and we made them better. I’m sure we’ll still be welcome… And I hope the rule we made there helped them pull through all this._

Emil pondered for a moment.

_\- Come to think of it, I wasn’t the one who came up with the rule…_

_\- Yup. Me neither. It was Nier once again, we just couldn’t recall it until now._

 

With that, Emil and Kainé shared a small, pleasant, friendly laugh.

_\- Kainé, I’m going to be trying to put some research into our weapons and then find out more stuff from the notes we got and the ones in my lab again today, so it’ll be just you and Nier up in the mansion. Well, Sebastian as well, but I’m sure he’ll stay out of your way._

_\- I see. I’ll try to cheer him up if the meeting doesn’t go as well as he hoped, or keep him quiet if it goes well and he’s too obnoxiously happy about it._

_\- You know that if we manage to bring her memories back, it won’t be just the three of us anymore? We’ll have to bring her along with us, and protect her from harm._

_\- I’m fine with her being with us. I’m fine with protecting her as well, as long as all of us don’t become any more endangered by it. The only things I thought I wouldn’t be fine with about her presence… I’m becoming less and less worried about those, somehow. Maybe it’s because we have some long mission to carry out again… but at our own pace this time. So far, at least._

Emil sighed, pondering.

_\- There’s still a risk you  three may get Black Scrawl…_

_\- Yes, there is. There always was. But, that doesn’t worry me so much if all three of us are gonna be taken down by the same thing, still together. All I’ll worry about will be you. And for as long as neither of us three has Black Scrawl, it somehow… somehow feels like despite all what happened, we managed to *win* Emil. And for a warrior like me, winning is a great feeling._

_\- I’m glad we won and are back again, Kainé._

_\- Me too, Emil._

_\- I’ll be down in the basement. Good luck with Nier._

_\- Good luck with your work, too._

At Yonah’s house.

_\- Thank you for your hospitality, Yonah, but I think it’s best if I go home now after all._

_\- Oh, no! Please feel free to stay around a little while longer._

_\- You didn’t seem to be that lonely to justify me staying. You get by reasonably well with the locals, don’t you?_

_\- Yes, but… -_ Yonah nervously pulled her hair back a bit. - … _None of them are friends or anyone special._

_\- Such things take time or extreme events to bond close enough to another. I’m sure with time you could make friends other than just us, too. But like I said… I think it’s better if I leave now._

_\- Will you visit me sometimes?_

_\- Of course I will. I’m certain Kainé and Emil will want to tag along more often than not, too, from now on. Thank you for the tea and your hospitability._

Nier felt like it’d be better if he didn’t continue this awkward situation or let it go any further. It was too confusing for him to ponder the meaning behind Yonah’s emotions and words, especially since he himself knew very little of what was the actual truth about her current state.

Yonah stood up and held his hand for a moment, but he tenderly placed his hand over hers to unhand himself, and smiled at her comfortingly before leaving through the door. Her hand seemed too tender and gentle for him to hold like this. He felt like any other action – letting her dwell or pushing her away forcefully – would end up having bad consequences for him.

 

As her brother, he could see it in her eyes as well. Yonah wasn’t sure about the meaning of emotions she was experiencing and her own feelings towards the group members herself, she just wasn’t as badly confused as he was… and was probably willing to try and go by instinct, if only for something to change and give her a realization of which path she should take.

Even if he was smaller than her now, Nier was a lot stronger and far too conflicted to let her have her way with whatever she wanted to happen with herself, Kainé, and him. Be it trying to connect physically with either of them, or trying to prevent Nier and Kainé from ever taking any steps in that direction.

 

But it was something he wasn’t thinking about at the time. He just wanted to get out of there to clear his head before he spouted in her face that they were siblings, or overcomplicated what his relation to her ‘Lady Kainé’ was, in her eyes or in his own mind.

 

Bowing his head to her in a farewell, Nier started to quickly take the path back to Emil’s mansion.

His mind couldn’t help but dwell on why did it seem like Yonah felt a connection with him even though she misunderstood that connection and couldn’t remember knowing him…

Or dwell on the multitude of resolutions to what seemed to be Yonah’s attitude towards Kainé and maybe even himself.

[“Why would she even suggest that me and Kainé…”]

 

 

 

 

Far away from Seafront…

Once the world itself was so altered and became much smaller and emptier, and once one was deprived of virtually all bodily needs, it was only perverse sentimentality that made people continue to strive to have any kind of governing system or body. Truth be told, everyone was perfectly happy handing almost all of the control to a single person, even though they made sure there was a system in place to allow for an easier designation of powers, privileges and duties.

Just in case it was necessary. The original one, who never went into a period of stasis as far as they were aware, had all the arguments to have everyone follow his own vision anyway, as mostly everyone was dependent on him to remain sane.

 

But now the ‘original one’ was gone, and they were arguing about which kind of direction was the right one to take.

_\- Need I remind you all that the Monarch of Spades’ ability to stabilize us with Maso is *fifteen* times lower than the Original One’s? We already have people so important as members of the courts themselves relapsing! We’re all in danger of that even if the Monarch’s efforts were to only focus on the people in this room, we’d still be at risk, and the other remaining ones will never agree to such a maneuver. We need to…_

_\- … Immediately push ourselves to accomplish backup procedures for joining with our vessels._

_\- We don’t even know if we can do that with the remaining Grimoires! This role was specifically made for.._

_\- There is a final failsafe procedure and we should try it as fast as possible, rather than waste our time trying to connect with the others, who likely are having many relapse problems themselves, or waste time trying to create a substitute for the Original One._

_\- I disagree. We won’t even be able to get all the remaining Grimoires to cooperate, and that’s assuming all ten still exist. Need I remind you Grimoire Turchesi was reported to be in one of the military bases just before the crisis there happened?_

_\- Then there’s no other way. We’ll need to bring together all possible courses of action and put it to a more common vote._

 

A single member of the meeting spoke nothing at all so far.

[“Useless prattling. How do I make them all cease yapping their mouth so much and see the truth? See the truth the way I did. Crystal clear. White like the most exquisite salt.”]

 

_\- I think along with other measures, we should consider using the memory entity to deal with the issues of the Grimoires being hard to find or going rogue._

_\- I agree. We’ll add it to the list of things we will vote upon on the next meeting with all the civilians._

_\- Any vote to make about exploration of the “Unconquerable” village?_

_\- The dangerous entity has no more time than we do. When their gestalt relapses, they will die._

_\- Agreed, the village should eventually suffer attacks from the relapsed ones if the Entity is gone._

_\- Excellent. Let’s move on to other options being formalized, then…_

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nier reached Emil’s mansion and the door was opened by Sebastian, letting him inside. The place seemed empty and quiet, suggesting at least one of his two companions was either out, or down in the basement laboratory.

After greeting the butler, taking a turn to the guest room proved that one of them was definitely around, though.

Kainé was already up on her feet when he came in, an expression full of curiosity and something else -  perhaps worry, on her face.

 _\- How’d it go?_ – She asked him, betraying that she indeed had some concers.

Turning around to check whether or not Sebastian could hear them, Nier turned to his friend, and sighed, shoulders slouching a bit.

_\- It was… really weird. She really doesn’t remember me, Kainé. It’s like she believes we’re connected somehow, she even sees a physical similarity, but the way she thinks of me or looks at me just makes me feel incredibly awkward, and there’s no sense of her recognizing me…_

Kainé raised an eyebrow at that.

_\- Awkward? How so?_

_\- It’s complicated and odd._

_\- You may feel better if you talk about it. And you sure as heck aren’t going to talk about it to her. Or Sebastian. Probably not Emil, either._

_\- Knowing you, you’re just going to make fun of me about it, because she’s my sister._

 

That caused Kainé to give him a little frown.

_\- First of all, I can be serious and helpful if need be, Nier. Second of all, it’s not like it matters *that* much to some, I think. But, just to be sure, you two didn’t do or try to do anything fucked up, did you?_

_With the last sentence delivered with Kainé finally cracking into a little smirk at his expression, Nier felt a little less panicked about his denial._

_\- No! Not at all. She did give me an awkward feeling or a couple about the way she spoke and what she spoke about, but we’ve done nothing nor delved too much into conversation about anything that siblings shouldn’t._

_\- Then just explain what was so awkward about it. And sit down, standing like this after all this walking around is a little exhausting._

 

Following her to one of the mansion’s sofas, Nier sat almost opposite the long-legged, white-haired swordswoman as he tried to speak of all of it in a way that made sense.

_\- Yonah said a lot of things that made it feel like we were still connected. Like she’d find it easy to care about me. She even said things that could be seen as embarrassing or as… some sort of…_

_\- Like she was making advances to you?_

_\- Yes, but it’s a little more complicated than that. I don’t know if I should be telling you this, but…_

_\- Nier, do you trust me?_

_\- Uh?_

_\- You can be honest. Do you trust me? You’ve said a lot of things up until now that were plenty compromising and brave, embarrassing and bold both. So, repeating things your sister said about awkward stuff… Saying this stuff to me is just the matter of whether you feel like you can trust me even with those things, or not._

_\- I do… trust you. I don’t want to go back on all I’ve said either. It’s just a little complicated, but… I’ll explain it to you._

_\- Go ahead._

_\- Every inappropriate comment or odd compliment Yonah gave me today… Ever single thing, including basically saying she felt like I was ‘out of a dream’… All this stuff sounded like she mostly concerned herself with you somehow. Whether it’s worry about you and me or worry about you and me being together or whether all of my worth in her eyes came from being of use to you or whether she was projecting something about herself, or any of us three, in some complicated manner during that talk… Even when she spoke of connection she and I might’ve had, Yonah seemed to pay a great deal attention to **you** , Kainé.  And that combined with the way she looked like and the things she said while she went on talking about such things… Was what made it so awkward._

 

That sure had Kainé stunned for a moment. It appeared Yonah was already imagining herself into some sort of weird emotional or even romantic triangle, only neither her nor Nier were able to explain which edges of said triangle were weighted which way, how much, and where they’d have lines with little hearts drawn over them pointing to.

_\- Well, doesn’t that sound like a whole nest of awkwardness and issues. It’s also rather… intriguing._

 

Surprised, Nier looked up from the couch he was sitting on, still quite torn up inside about what happened and about him spilling the beans about it to Kainé so easily, and he saw an expression he remembered Kainé sometimes having back when a fight was beginning to look like a challenge but before it started getting really painful.

Kainé’s expression was, in the simplest of terms, playful.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two things to add as an explanation.
> 
> First of all, what our lovely hermaphrodite did to get herself unable to visit Nier's village won't be outright stated in the story at any point, because the implication is rather unpleasant. People with access to Grimoire Nier or Nier Replicant Drama CD are likely quite aware or have a good guess of what it was. However, I've been playing with the idea of writing a series of 'Diaries' as a prequel to this and posting them here in a series. They'd be short, wouldn't take much time and would provide a slightly better insight into certain things.
> 
> Second of all, Yonah was suggested by the author to still suffer from Black Scrawl (as would her father/brother after the events of the game) in most of the game's endings. Yonah's apparent healing from it after her fusion with her Gestalt was a personal decision I, and probably many people who write Nier continuations, made.


	11. 3 - Interlude : First Embrace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kainé finally realizes what intimacy and lust feel when mixed with that something - or someone - very special.

_\- Intriguing?_ – Nier asked, confused about what Kainé meant.

_\- Well, yeah. I mean, the amount of reasons Yonah might’ve had for talking about this with you is huge. Combine this with the amount of reasons you’ve had for finding the conversation potentially awkward, displeasing, unnerving… The potential reasons you might’ve had for wanting Yonah to feel one way rather than the other, and it creates quite an intriguing web of possibilities._

 

Nier shifted his gaze from Kainé’s face. It was evidently not the brightest idea he ever had to tell her even that much, given that there was no way she’d just let it be. Kainé might’ve not been the most talkative person, but she was fairly prone to confronting certain things, usually when they concerned *others*.

_\- Still, first, we should probably dig a little into why this situation made you feel like this and if there’s a way you can avoid this kind of awkwardness in the future._

 

Nier tried looking back at her. Kainé uncrossed her legs, which the white-haired youth tried to not look at too much, and leaned forward, seemingly also preparing to get back up from her seat.

  * _I can’t really say anything about Yonah’s side of things or how she’d react to someone she feels like she’s connected to, but doesn’t know about. But as far as you’re concerned, things are a little simpler._
  * _They don’t seem simple at all._
  * _That’s because you’re unused to this sort of thing. You’re used to running around the fucking place, doing small jobs and requests for almost everyone you meet, and hacking things around with your sword while being primarily concerned about Yonah. From what I understand more or less all of your experiences in the area this talk might’ve concerned itself with were pretty goddamn bad. But now that you can’t focus just on being violent to enemies and helping friends and would-be friends, fight a little less in general, interact with people who seem to care for you a little more, and so on… You’re starting to become conscious of it. Conscious of people thinking of things you’re unaccustomed to, so you start thinking of them as well._
  * _You’re talking about…_
  * _Lust. Romance. Love. There’s a whole fucking world of things you’ve been purposely trying to avoid, missing each of them all the time, but with me both dressing and acting in certain ways, and your way, way grown up pretty girl of a sister seeming to also have some of them on her mind when her amnesiac brain got you…_
  * _… Or you, more likely…_
  * _…or me put in it, and with a sixteen year old’s hormones running wild without your life-and-death super stressful gotta-save-my-sister situations and mentality, it’s only quite natural that you’d be feeling and experiencing various things you didn’t think of, or thought of as bad, dirty, or embarrassing._



She stood up. Even without any shoes on, Kainé was quite tall, and her legs seemed to go on forever before ending in the alluring curve of her hips.

  * _Did you… feel the same at any point?_
  * _Yes, and no. I’ve been younger at a time as well, but my sources of stress were less different. They didn’t give me focus like yours did. Mostly, I hated myself at that time, but my grandmother helped bring me out of it, to an extent. Then, she died, and I fused with Tyrann to survive. Ironically it was Tyrann that made me really awaken physically, in a way that seemed to only further screw me up. I liked fighting, but Tyrann *loved* bloodshed. Since we were two people with their own weird quirks in a single body, I ended up being in a state of excitement far different than what you’d expect after many battles. Mostly had to deal with it on my own, however. So, in many ways, my situation is both a reverse and mirror image of yours._



Nier seemed a little confused about where this conversation was straying.

  * _Should we be having this kind of t…_
  * _You have nobody else to have it with, right? Only Emil and me. Out of the two, I’m a little more aware of how frustration feels, I believe. And regrettably it seems there are bits and pieces of me that when combined with the side of me you were not used to can sometimes increase the frustration you feel._
  * _It’s not… frustrating. It’s just distracting._
  * _Oh, right. You haven’t felt it enough for it to *really* be frustrating, unlike me. I don’t think you were in the position where you really wanted to find a way to connect to someone but everything screamed like it was wrong time and time again, and you didn’t know how to express it. But, in a way, you may be feeling like that now._



 

Nier tilted his head as Kainé leaned into him. She stopped just short of rubbing her forehead against his, then withdrew. This Kainé wasn’t really all that *different* from the one he remembered. She was just a lot *more*, in general. Frustration, anger, sadness, kindness, a little bit of joy, and something else, something his young mind couldn’t get yet, were beaming from her eyes, her face, her slightly twitching lips. The one thing she didn’t seem to have was the hesitation, fear, or confusion the old Kainé sometimes blasted people with when a situation or talk turned to where she didn’t expect.

 

 

Nier was beginning to realize that, while he was gone, and more so since he returned, Kainé got close to somehow beating her sense of shame at her body. There was not much of a reason why it’d seem like she’d be ashamed of it, save for her words implying a lot and her overly flashy way of dressing – resembling underwear and nighties more than any functional clothing -  being surprisingly bulged at the crotch level, so Nier, at least this Nier, was mostly guessing all the while.

 

He didn’t know if her behavior towards him was some selfish grab at the closest possible human target now that this sense of shame was gone, a kind attempt at destroying his own armor of self-denial and embarrassment before it managed to form, or something deeper. She still didn’t state most of the things she thought, still didn’t say much about her own emotions and feelings up front. When she did, those were usually obvious things, cruel things, or things that absolutely **had** to be said in an entirely open and forward manner.

 

 

Nier didn’t know much about women, but in her own ways, Kainé was certainly quite feminine. It was his turn to try and say something, however.

  * _But… I don’t know what to really do about it. I don’t want to be hated for it. The only times I’ve had any experience in the matter, I… I hated it. It was because I agreed to it, he just… did what he wanted, how he wanted. I don’t want anyone to hate me for giving in to something so fi…_
  * _Does that mean you hate me as well? Because I’ve had those desires after *killing* people? Shades and humans? Because I sometimes gave in to those desires too? I denied myself for a long time, and there was a circumstance that kept making it way, way, way worse along the way, Nier. So when my willpower was broken at several points in time, I’ve done bad things, disgusting things, things I regret. I don’t want you to grow so self-denied you’d ever need to consider doing what I tried to do, or actually did. But, I know I can’t help you if it’s something you hate. I know I can’t help you if you hate me for knowing I’ve done such things._
  * _But you’ve done that because you were possessed, and because you were scorned, and because you were alone all the time! There are… circumstances…_
  * _So, maybe if you knew the other people’s circumstances for giving in to a need, you’d hate them less. But you can’t always know those. So if you think of such things as universally filthy, you’ll just add to the list of people you hate because of circumstances._
  * _I don’t… hate you, Kainé. People change. I don’t think I understand why you try to do so many things for my sake, but I couldn’t hate you. Not the way you were or the way you are now._
  * _It is going to be difficult for you to understand for a while, I guess… But this isn’t just for your sake that I do some things. I’m not that selfless… anymore. There was just a very short time in my life where I could handle selflessness, and I lost something very important because of it. A lot of important things. And those things included you._
  * _Kainé… you’re still very close._
  * _Shit, Nier. Don’t say dumb things. I’m not close enough._



Gently, tenderly, Kainé leaned in and pressed their foreheads together this time. He felt her hand lower itself, rubbing over his stomach, and then, it rested at his groin. He didn’t even notice when he got a full erection, but he was well-aware of the fact Kainé was now touching it, and she wouldn’t desist.

  * _T-th…_
  * _It is natural, as long as you’re aware of what it means. It’s a compliment, as long as your body fucking understands what it’s getting into, Nier._
  * _What do you mean, Kainé?_
  * _I mean… you were upset by your sister apparently imagining some sort of connection between the three of us. But what were you imagining that annoyed you? Is it that you can’t accept she could’ve thought the two of us might…_
  * _No, Kainé. It wasn’t that. I don’t think that’s what worried me._
  * _Then what remains is that you, other than having doubts about having such feelings between brother and sister, were either worried I would steal Yonah from you, or she’d steal me from you, right?_



 

Nier paused. He seemed to be pondering those things intensely, but the answer just wouldn’t came. Kainé cut in before he could respond.

  * _It’s okay. You’re young. You may not fully understand it yourself yet. Hell, I probably wouldn’t if it was me put in that sort of situation. But… if you’re okay with it… if you’re aware of what it means for the two of us to do such things, if your body *fully understands what it’s getting into*…And I mean it both overall, and specifically with me, Nier… Then we can try out and see what it is that you might’ve been concerned about. I mean, your… thing… Why is it like that? Because you just spoke of such things with two women? Because you imagined one of us being in a relationship of this sort with your sister? Or is it like that because you see what you want to see? Did it get so stiff because you can see all of me, and yet don’t really care about things that are there that shouldn’t be there?_
  * _Kainé? Hey, Kainé, you’re already wearing little enough as-i…_



The most familiar and usual cloth that Kainé had, in several copies too, at least if what she claimed was true, the intricate dress in varying shades of blue that barely counted as underwear, and seemed to uncover almost everything your average day-to-day woman tried to cover, fell down to the floor.  Kainé had no conceivable reason to be ashamed of the upper side of her body when they were traveling, roughly three and a half years ago according to what she told him. Nier wasn’t exactly focused on that fact nor was he overly conscious of the allure of her upper body, but at the times he did think of it, he could say he was well aware that Kainé’s body from the waist up left little to be desired.

If anything, the flow of time only made her all the more beautiful and gave all the more reason for confidence. Her alluring curves and her long legs, well-developed but not excessive back then, seemed like they finished ripening in the meantime. Kainé’s body was always beautiful with something of a tomboyish quality, and while that was charming in its own way, now some of that quality was lost as she seemed to turn from a shy bud into a blooming flower.

 

 

Kainé’s stomach was taut. It wasn’t chiseled, ripped, or anything like that, and seemed smooth, but one could tell the working of muscles underneath as they flexed and unflexed at Kainé’s growing excitement from showing herself off. Was she excited because he was so young? Maybe it added to it, but primarily it felt different because she was showing herself off to Nier. If she wasn’t in the habit of gorging herself on some foods, she’d probably had a full set of abs showing off just how strong her body was, but instead it was a subtle thing, a quiet reminder of her strength buried under something that seemed quite pretty, a veneer of feminine softness over the sheer destructive power and durability greater than that of almost any man. Kainé’s stomach was like all of Kainé, in a way.

 

 

Above and further below the waist, there was no doubts as to what gender Kainé belonged in between the two. Her breasts were large enough to fill out a grown man’s hands all by themselves, so to someone still rather small like Nier, they seemed almost huge. Her nipples were less intrusive but visible with their presence, blooms of darker color on her otherwise pale skin. They stiffened and darkened, seeming close enough to red in color – particularly in contrast to her fair, somewhat pale skin tone - to cause Nier some concern, but it didn’t appear to bother Kainé herself.

Her hands motioned to draw his attention lower, however.

Her butt got a little bigger than in the past, too. The changes were subtle. Only someone who suddenly saw one version of her soon before the other, like this particular version of Nier, would probably notice. Kainé’s rump seemed like a shapely, well-formed, perfect finisher to her legs, but with practically everything but her underwear gone, it was no longer just a thing that was nice to look at. The striking curve from her stomach through her hip and down to these lovely legs was exciting, a stimuli the young Nier was unused to seeing, and yet he knew that he needed to focus on the centre of her picture; the bulging-out front of Kainé’s panties.

She hesitated, or at least he thought she did. Idly, one of her hands was hooked into the waistband of her panties, and the other reached up to the Lunar Tear in her hair.

Kainé didn’t feel that particular sensation from realizing the presence of that flower in more than three years. During said three years, it being there was always making her sad, confused, alone and empty inside while dripping liquid feelings of want and shades of hope that flew out of her eyes along with her tears.

 

Now, instead, this want was channeled. It was comforting to be steps away from possibly indulging in it.

For the first time in several years, Kainé smiled as she touched that the Lunar Tear. At the same time, she yanked her underwear down strong enough to make sure everything was exposed in one fell swoop. Being watched made her excited, so the sign of said excitement was proudly jutting out of her body, pointing straight at Nier. He had no idea how she managed to tug it all into her underwear while leaving it relatively subtle, but it wasn’t a small thing at all. Neither was it immense, however. Kainé’s cock might’ve been bigger than Nier’s, it might’ve been bigger than any Nier has seen up until now, but ultimately it was just a part of a regular human being who tried hard at doing things normal human beings didn’t. The tip seemed just a little moist, emerging from a small robe of foreskin that appeared a little mismatched for its general size. It seemed lively, throbbing when he looked at it.

Despite knowing it shouldn’t be there, Nier couldn’t take his eyes off of it. Kainé was beautiful, and even the masculine part of her body appeared far more beautiful and pristine than that of a man. **That** man, or any man for the matter.

  * _Damn it Nier, say… Something. I know it’s barely a secret that I have a body like this, but you’re faced with it in a way that leaves no doubt whatsoever. I can’t even read your face with the way you’re staring, bastard._
  * _Some…thing…_



Kainé rolled her eyes slightly before Nier continued.

  * _You’re really beautiful, Kainé. I don’t know how it was so hard for me to notice up until now, but… you’re really beautiful._



This, in turn, made her blush instead, stuttering for but a moment as she tried to respond in her usual manner.

  * _Y-you fucker, saying embarrassing things with a straight face again. Are you… really fine with this sort of body? Is it still okay if there’s no way you’d be unable to see it?_
  * _I don’t have much experience either way, and it’s mostly bad experience, but… But you are beautiful, Kainé._



 

She nodded. Looking down at his own groin, his erection didn’t get any smaller. The light throbbing of it was visible through his clothes. The last man Kainé managed to get her hands on wasn’t nearly as fascinated or as… lively.

She scolded herself for the bad memory and the dark humor which sounded like something out of Tyrann’s mouth. She absorbed too much of the shades’ tendencies.

  * _Well then, Nier. If you tell me something like this, I’m going to go by instinct, since it looks like we’re both okay with it. And as long as you’re still inexperienced and a youngster, no matter how amazing of a youngster, I’m going to have to act my age and be the proactive one, for the time being. No shame in it, just make sure to slowly get your own moves on, too._
  * _What are you tal…_



 

Kainé never silenced anyone with a kiss. Ever. Her senses were sharp, her body was quick and strong, but she still worried she was going to miss his lips and mess up horribly. But, by some miracle or precisely because her senses were so well-honed, that didn’t happen.. She somehow followed the reaction of Nier’s body at her sudden movement with her own, their lips clasping together tightly, but not in a manner too forceful for her to enjoy his youthful softness and features. Her tongue rolled across both of their lips and stabbed at the tip of his own, but didn’t force its way deeper into his own mouth for fear of making their first official kiss since their respective restorations a too traumatizing and forceful one.

Nier himself was torn between being frozen and flailing, but there was this slight, dreadful realization in him. A memory combined with the life he had now, the situation he was in now, and he realized he might’ve had more power over the situation back then than he had right now. Specifically, if Kainé really decided she wanted to do something with Nier, there were only so many ways in which he could resist, and most of them not particularly effective, either.

 

Kainé pried her lips away so they could both take a deeper breath, and her tongue flicked his upper lip almost up to the tip of his nose.

  * _So fucking cute._



He couldn’t respond or protest as she placed her lips up against his again, but it felt different. She was even less aggressive, despite her hands slowly traveling down his own body and hooking into his own lower clothes and underwear, starting to pull them down. His erection sprung up, even livelier than Kainé’s own, practically slapping the clothes on his stomach. It was then that Nier realized what was different about that kiss. Kainé was giving him time to resist, stop her, giving him a way out. Waiting to see if he’d try to pull away. His body couldn’t remember what it was like to *not* want to pull away from a situation like this, so he had to work it out with his mind. Gently tilting into her, his hips raised to give her some space, but fell back down when Nier realized allowing her to manipulate his lower half was crossing a line. So, instead, he worked with his lips, gently rubbing their soft surface against the normally frowning, but oddly pretty mouth of his hermaphroditic companion.

 

She was confused at the movement of his hips, but comforted by his mouth.

[“This kid is actually trying to put his tongue in my mouth. Quite the set of balls on you, Nier.”]

Nier shuddered as Kainé’s balance shifted, pushing her lips into his, and brushing her soft breasts against his body. He felt a touch at his groin which he realized was the upper side of Kainé’s foot, which then promptly moved downwards, rubbed at his exposed thigh, and kept pushing at his own underwear and trousers until they were being stomped into the floor. Only then did Kainé finally break the kiss, a thin string of saliva being the proof of the gentle suction she applied to Nier’s tongue when he managed to sneak it in.

  * _You’ll be a good kisser if you keep practicing. Although, that kind of a kiss was a first for me._



Nier’s eyes studied her expression before he decided to voice an opinion on what was happening.

  * _Kainé, don’t you think this sort of thing should only be done for someone you love?_
  * _Good one. Not ‘with someone’, but ‘for someone’. Good one. Well, Nier, that’s still pretty cool. You just need to set your heart in the right place, if that’s the case. And I did tell you I’ll stick around until you can make me give you the expression you want to see on my face, so if this expression turns out being the one of a lover, this will be entirely normal to do, right?_
  * _Isn’t it a little more complicated than that, Kainé? Wouldn’t you rather… save it for someone special, or something?_



Kainé smiled, and shook her head.

  * _Our bodies are saying we need this, Nier. You can see that, right? We’re both hard and I’m getting wet between the legs, too. Besides, it’s just the way I told you. Seeing what kind of feelings you really have. Don’t think I’d do it with just anybody in the way I am trying to do it now, either._
  * _I told you that I don’t know if it’s all right to just follow a desire like this all the way, forcibly…_
  * _You had crappy experiences, I’ve had crappy experiences, but you still remain idealistic like that, Nier. So I’m going to tell you now that it should be the most “all right” thing in the world to be able to seek out pleasure with, through, and for a person you want to do such things with. And if you think you’re low on my list of people I want to such things with, you’re a fucking dumbass and you didn’t listen to a single goddamn word I’ve said._
  * _I did listen. I just don’t know what is the reason for all this. I just don’t know what changed. That’s why I’m confused, other than having ‘crappy’ experiences._
  * _But I’m ‘beautiful’. And I’m here. And this *is* real, Nier. Anything we do right now could be the most real experience I’d get to have, too. So stop being so damn uptight, and let go. We won’t have actual sex if it’s still a problem for you, but we do need to get off, and you need to start learning some things about how to deal with women in these sorts of situations. Your body’s flushed, you’re excited, our hearts are beating like crazy, and you’re ready to go forward, to do things with me that should be pleasant and will be if we’re the ones to do it the way we are now. So just tell me one thing, Nier, d…_
  * _I want to. Yes. I want to help you relax, I want to kiss you more, I want to touch your body, I want to feel what it’s like when the other person gives a damn._
  * _Good kid. Reading naked girls like books now, are we? Well, you can do at least one of those things easily now, can’t you?_



 

Kainé leaned over his body again. Her hands came to rest on his cheeks and lifted them up  so they’d look each other in the eye, just as her body leaned into and over his own. One of his own palms was on her leg, on her beautiful shapely thigh, and slowly moving upwards. The other reached out and cupped her breast. It was soft, and easily filled out the spaces inbetween Nier’s  still comparatively little fingers, and their lips were pressed together again. This time, Kainé was decisively on the attack, plunging her tongue into Nier’s mouth and sliding it along his cheeks as if getting a thorough taste of him while his hand finally got to the exploring of her groin.

 

It was an entirely alien area for the youngster. Women had their parts, and men had theirs. Kainé had both, and he didn’t know exactly what to do about that, especially with them closely packed as they were, partially explaining how they fit in the ridiculously flimsy underwear she was used to wearing. There was a slit that lightly quivered and grew moist at his fingertips running across it, outlined by sensitive skin folds, moving upwards only to bulge out into a taut, small set of testicles. Unlike her member above, they seemed small in regards to her overall body size, but she still shuddered at them being touched like this. Moving his hand further up resulted in Kainé breaking their kiss after humping the palm of his hand but once.

  * _Nier… you little bastard…_
  * _You said it was all right to touch, but I don’t know what I’m doing yet, so I was trying to…_
  * _No, no, it felt good. It felt… good. But, I’m pretty fucking impulsive, Nier, so if you tease me like this I may end up taking it the wrong way, and we don’t want to have you hating it._
  * _Am I too… small and weak and bashful when I do this?_
  * _Not anymore than it’d feel natural at your age. You’re growing, Nier, and this is to help you grow. In my eyes, you’re a young man becoming a wonderful man, so I’m going to do a taste-check now to prove what my eyes are seeing._



 

Kainé’s hands rested on Nier’s thighs then, spreading them wider as she slowly slid down from the couch they were on.

  * _Does taste-check mean what I think it means?_
  * _I don’t know if you’re a pervert yet so I can’t say it for sure._
  * _You’re going to lick it while it’s inside your mouth._
  * _Whooaaa, graphic. Yeah, so?_
  * _It wasn’t wa…_
  * _I know, but you’re clean enough, and the smell’s not bad, either. You can lean back and relax, or you can try being all cheeky with me and trying to pull at my head or push inside my mouth, it’s pretty much whatever today. Either way’s pretty manly, just don’t say stupid stuff like ‘oh nooo, stoooop’, or you’ll really come off looking like a girl._



Seeing Kainé’s beautiful face so near his crotch made Nier’s member throb and twitch like crazy. Her lips were thin, almost boyish, but so very soft and pretty, and they shamelessly pushed themselves up against his tip as Kainé took the first taste of the man she’s been pried away from for three and a half years, and has been wanting to be joined with in some manner for even longer than that.

The taste of Nier had her lips opening up further and her head tilting, closing right underneath his tip, sideways, then sliding even lower to help bare his sensitive tip entirely. The feeling of her breath down there caused Nier to shudder, but he knew he wasn’t supposed to be acting like this. Despite the realization, he couldn’t help it quite yet. Tossing his head back, Nier resigned himself to let her take the reigns for the first time he had this kind of sensation, wondering if there’d be a second. He rested his hands on the back of the couch to stop himself from doing anything silly, only now noticing she left the Lunar Tear she seemed to always carry in her hair at the table next to them.

And looking down at it carried the temptation of looking at Kainé’s face as it did more and more naughty and sexual things to his groin. He felt his tip resting at the lightly snuck-out tip of her tongue as Kainé’s lips opened, then slowly closed down lower, embracing the entire crown of his member in the warm, moist cavity of her mouth. She stubbornly pushed the thing further in as her lips’ tight embrace slid down his length, and his member started dripping precum the moment her tongue begun to do just as he said – lap at the ever-increasing amount of his length inside of what lay behind her moist lips.

 

Because there wasn’t enough wetness involved yet, even Kainé’s stubbornness had its limit, and she angled his cock to rub along the inside of her cheek rather than choke from trying to force it in. His sensitive tip was able to enjoy being slid across the moist flesh inside of her mouth while her tongue tried to cope with the presence of the intruder by wrapping itself around his cock at different angles.

Nier was smaller than her, but that came with being young – and for someone rather short, he definitely had quite the tool, so compared to the rest of his body it seemed almost huge. Kainé’s emotions and feelings trembled at stuffing her mouth and cheeks full of the length of a cute boy whom she was already well-aware was going to grow up to be a tall and exquisite man, but the hungry quivering inside of her was primarily driven by her knowledge of just *whom* this man was, by the sheer amount of self-denial and struggle she went through before she was able to even properly kiss him, only to end up sucking him off moments later.

She was more than willing to wring him dry with just this, although her hands itched to take care of the throbbing length and the yearning womanhood between her own thighs.

 

 

There were years of backed-up lust in Nier’s own body, too, so she knew it shouldn’t have been long until they could consider her own turn at anything.

Nier was amazed to look down and see Kainé’s immense stubbornness in devouring his entire young shaft as soon as possible. Thin and light strings of drool mixed with a bit of his own fluid were running down his length, dampening it and aiding in her struggle, and her hands, clad in soft fabric of gloves as usual, rested on his naked thighs. The left one slid even closer home before she was rolling his tightening sack against her fingertips. He knew the look her eyes held very well. It was mixed with something else, something beautiful and profound that almost had him paralyzed with how well it mixed with the other emotion conveyed in her gaze – the one that, rather than reminding him of the teasing Kainé he sometimes saw lately, showed him one he was quite familiar with - the Kainé that was out of patience and was going for instant results.

In this case, ‘result’ would be his instant gratification. Her lips tightened and quivered along the veins of his member as her tongue directly cleaned the slit at his tip from the sticky fluid it was leaking. It then traveled along the ridge of his expanding and throbbing tip, diving along the sensitive spots and rolling the foreskin out of the way further, causing his entire body to finally reveal its state of excitement by shuddering. Kainé’s hand stopped its tender molestation of his testicles and she pulled her lips off of his tip.

 

He was left to feel the air chilling down his now obviously glistening member, with the latter throbbing obviously at the suddenly denied sensations. She, in contrast, ‘was left’ to see it, which in her current mood caused her to subconsciously lick her lips.

  * _When you’re with someone and try to do it for real, I guess there’s two ways to go about it. One is to hold yourself back for their sake. Most people feel too fucking blissed out and tired after shooting it out and the perspective of doing it further can actually seem unpleasant for a while. The other is to check if you can recover quickly and just keep going twice or thrice instead of stopping at one time, but that mostly can’t happen once you’re past a certain age. Buuut, for someone so young like you, it’s possible, so the choice’s out of your hands for today, okay, Nier?_
  * _It feels good, Kainé… but it’s mean to try to teach me things when my brain’s all melting from the pleasure, you know._
  * _Huuuh? If you don’t want a lecture, you need to place your hands at the back of someone’s head and hold them there. Gotta be sure they won’t get angry with you for that, though. Anyway, like I said, the choice’s out of your hands and I’m gonna wring your dick dry now. It throbbed so happily and deliciously when I said it. Such an awfully honest one we have here._



 

Kainé spat out some drool over the top side of his member, then dipped her tongue before the saliva excessively pooled up or dripped down the sides of his member, spreading it backwards with her tongue. Her narrow chin was repeatedly being slid against by the young man’s moist and lightly drooling tip, the throbbing causing it to raise, slap the bottom of her chin, slide over it to the side, then gently lower itself before yet another throb. It was like Kainé was both moistening him up to allow herself to really go deep and purposefully allowing him to enjoy the feeling of making a woman sucking him off messy.

Nier groaned lightly at being welcomed back into her open mouth, gasped quietly at the woman’s lips sliding down, up, and back down his straining length and finally gave out a yelp followed by what seemed to be moaning, pleasure-addled version of her name when he finally felt himself buried so deep inside of her mouth that there was nothing of his length left exposed to air. Inside her mouth, something seemed to rub at his messy cumslit and the engorged, darkening head, and Kainé was trying to get him to feel the tight embrace of her lips at the base of his member and even press them against his – for now left alone – nutsack to as she kept him stuck inside of her mouth for a while, then pulled him out with a loud “puah”. Numerous strings of drool and precum were connecting his erection with her opened-wide mouth only to disappear forever as she started to bob her head aggressively and continue sucking on the first half-and-a-bit of his member, prompting him to groan out.

  * _I… can’t last… this weird feeling is rising up…_



 

Kainé understood perfectly and urged him on with a pleasant coo, the sound transferring to vibrations that went all over the length of his member. Her hands finally lowered themselves to start rubbing the slit behind her own ‘manhood’ in circles while her left hand clutched her member and started to jerk it off at an increasing pace. It wasn’t to make herself orgasm just yet, mostly just to enjoy the sensation while enjoying the view, taste, and the odd realization that she might’ve been giving Nier more sexual pleasure than anyone ever has.

They didn’t even notice when he was tipped past his breaking point, his member simply pulsing slowly as it unloaded the first orgasm Nier ever pumped out into another person’s body onto Kainé’s palate, then at the inside of her cheeks, and then, with less pressure, adding more and more onto her tongue to taste. Ropes of sticky seed were shooting out of his tip, one after the other, to coat her taste buds and the sticky inside of her mouth with something brighter and even more sticky than her drool. For a not very rich kid, Nier was, due to the state of the world and the kinds of food obtainable, having a rather healthy diet composed of all sorts of fish, meat, and vegetables. It was well-balanced, and he was young. These factors combined with Kainé’s rather intense feelings for him were causing her tongue to report just one thing to her brain – Nier’s seed was delicious, and the only reason she didn’t swallow it *all* on the first go was because she still wanted to roll it across her tongue, then show him a far more lascivious and decadent appearance of hers. His hips were barely held in place by willpower alone, but his cock was not, and it seemed to pulse so strongly it slid from her tongue almost all the way back to the roof of her mouth, the pumping eventually only able to dribble and pump smaller dollops of cum.

 

Still, Nier was intricately aware that Kainé, the powerful, assertive, irritable, sometimes proud Kainé, out of her own will, was tasting and swallowing some of his seed. There were some conflicting feeling in him, empowerment mixing with the sensation of being almost milked for it, the light tiredness of after-climax, and the curious hunch that the aggressive, self-sufficient swordswoman wouldn’t have done this for just anyone.

She drew back and opened her mouth, showing off the remnants of his seed that didn’t go down the hatch yet, presenting him with the proof of his pearly, increasingly sticky seed was indeed shot into her mouth and then mostly swallowed. They both realized it was a somewhat dirty thing to do, but  Kainé would be damned before she’d find herself caring about that. She then closed them back up again and gulped audibly. Leaning in, she tenderly wrapped her lips back against his lightly flagging erection’s tip and gave another audible slurp, gently drawing out the last dregs of seed remaining inside the slit and down his urethra.

 

 

He was finally out of her mouth and she took a moment to wipe her lips and chin to retrieve some of her normal appearance from this mess. Nier decided to pick the cream of the crop, the best feelings out of the dreadful mess of emotions and thoughts his mind had about this encounter, and express them.

  * _It felt absolutely amazing, Kainé! It was like you were enthusiastic about it and showing me all sorts of things, and then the sensations and the way you moved your lips and tongue felt so good that I couldn’t hold back at all!_
  * _That’s because you held it in for sixteen years, dumbass. A fully healthy person would’ve masturbated if someone they didn’t find repulsive was dressing like a ‘hussy’ around them all the time, unless they were a goddamn siscon, then they’d just do it at home to their sibling. But, I’m not going to ask about your masturbation diary, since there’s no need to get you embarrassed now. I’m glad it felt good for you, brat, but it’s time to think on how much energy you have left and what you want to do next with it._



 

Nier couldn’t help but look down to Kainé’s own groin now that she was lightly backed away, then lifted his eyes to her breasts, stopped a moment, and looked at her face.

  * _I should try to make you feel good. I want to make you feel good, too, Kainé._



Kainé’s heart fluttered at the declaration, and the honesty in his voice, but there were many ways he could do that, so she was also incredibly curious. It was really the only upside to her freaky body – these rare times when she could take her guard down, the sensitivity and amount of erogenous zones could’ve lent itself to great pleasure if she wasn’t so stuck-up about herself and the sources of that pleasure.

 

Kainé stood up, and picked up the flower from the desk. She walked out of the room, into the next one, locked it once Nier followed her, and opened the door to the neighboring chamber, the technical ‘guest bedroom number two’ of the mansion.

  * _I’m grateful, Nier. And I’ll take you up on that offer, but… I’d like to continue on the bed, if that’s okay. And if it’s still fine afterwards, we could sleep in one bed, too. Come._



 

 

Twirling the Lunar Tear lightly in her fingertips, she found a new resting spot for it after the change of the rooms, and slowly approached the bed with Nier in tow.

She tossed herself onto the cool sheets, closed her eyes, and opened them right back again to take in the scene.

To Kainé, after almost a quarter of a century of life in her current form, this picture and sensation were entirely new.

Waiting, naked, on bedsheets, as someone willingly approached her with the intent of giving her pleasure. Someone important, special, treasured.

 

A tear run down from her eye, but Nier was a little too preoccupied and nervous to notice. It was still just something physical, but as long as the boy heard and understood that it *mattered*, and was *real*, it retained that veneer of being more special than just jerking off or using someone handy to unload frustration.

Nier’s hands rested on her stomach. They slid up, lightly cupping her breasts, and then he loomed over her body, kissing from where his palms just moved up from. One of his hands removed itself from one of her breasts and started sliding down her side, to her hip line. It was substituted by a pair of lips kissing at the underside of her breast, then higher up, tight on her nipple. A gasp of pleasure escaped Kainé’s mouth already from the sensation, her guard already lowered so much that she could feel her body simply give in to its natural desires. It seemed like her endurance against pleasure was lower than she’d expect in this kind of situation. It could also be Nier was simply relatively talented at sex.

 

 

The boy’s lips moved up. She leaned up and into him, not wanting him to do all the work. The kiss wasn’t deep, but it wasn’t entirely chaste or passionless either. His hands were in reverse compared to when she stopped him before. Left on her breast, right down there, tenderly stroking the member that was poking him in the stomach. Sliding her hands lower to grab at his clothes, Kainé pulled them up until he got the message and allowed her to remove them one by one, leaving him about as naked as she was.

 

She wore gloves, he had socks on. Something in her found that cute.

He resumed kissing at the underside of her breast, and his other hand mirrored the path of the first one. The hand tenderly and tentatively stroking her member removed itself from it for now as it slid lower inbetween her legs, touching the female side of her sex once more, rubbing at the moistening slit in uncertain, circular motions.  His lack of experience and nervousness straight-up aroused her. They were both tainted by this world, with stains of their own, this world tried to pry them apart as well, but Nier’s touch on her body was still so innocent, yet so eager, and purely because it was *him* showing her all this and giving her these touches, Kainé found herself becoming even more turned on.

Her hips almost pushed up against him involuntarily when his left hand joined his right and wrapped its fingertips around her erection. The strokes were tender, but getting tighter the closer his face was to the level of her groin.

She started to breathe heavily as she looked down at Nier. His eyes were carefully observing her member as it was rubbed through his fingers. From the small patch of white hair above it, to the veins on the shaft, the lightly dripping tip, and all the way back down, curious about how her testicles crossed with the uppermost part of her womanhood.

 

And then he opened his mouth, and she felt his breath on it. She could almost feel the moistness inside, too, but she had to make sure he understood what he was getting into.

  * _Uhhh, f-fuck, Nier… you don’t have to do everything I did, you know? Just watch your t-teeth and don’t try to take it too deeply in at once. Start slow. On most people, the tip is m-most sensitive by far, anyway… Actually, you don’t even have to do it to that part if you don’t wahnn-nt to._
  * _I know. Kainé’s very big, so I’ll struggle with putting it in my mouth, but I want to make you feel the best I can, so I’m going to try._



 

Kainé found herself too shy to look Nier in the eye when his own lips enveloped the very tip of her member. She just laid her head back and waited for that moment. She’d either tell him the truth on what she felt or she’d spout some incredible array of profanities if she looked him in the eye while her dick and his mouth shared their first ‘kiss’, and she had to focus on stopping her hips from plunging deeper into the boy’s open mouth anyway. The young man did mind his teeth, and his tongue was gentle, but rolled over the spots that felt good, right at the underside and the ridge of her head, not going for the slit at the tip immediately. Kainé was forcibly slowing down her breathing as she tried to fight back against her quickening heartbeat.

The woman’s tip slid across the roof of the sixteen year-old’s mouth and let out the first dose of precum at the sensation. She was holding back as well. The drippy fluid was sucked away down her partner’s throat almost immediately. He didn’t mind the taste, it seemed, and his tongue was lightly reaching from between his lips when they weren’t clasped tight, spreading his saliva lower on her length so he could take her a little deeper inside, bit by bit.

She craved more touch, she desired more tactile confirmation that this was really happening to her. Slowly, she pushed her hips out against him. Kainé ‘s shaft didn’t really slide in any deeper. Her hips’ movement just rubbed it tenderly atop of his tongue and the roof of his mouth, and almost getting his fingers questing around the female side of her sex to slide inside of her, which he seemed to understand as he pushed them forwards tentatively… then, as she lowered her own hand towards his head, he froze momentarily.

 

 

[“So, he’s had bad experiences… but is quite good at it. Like he knows something about how it’s done. And he’s been very nervous about the perspective of his sister working at Seafront. The bad experience was of this kind, I presume… For Yonah’s sake, probably, he got stained like this. Did he usually put his hair up in such an odd manner to discourage people stroking it? Does he hate it? That’s a little sad, but I’ll never speak of that hunch. I just want him to myself, no matter what happened in the past. I want him to have me, too.”]

 

Avoiding his hair on a hunch, Kainé’s gloved fingers instead gently stroked Nier’s cheek as she looked into his eyes dreamily. It seemed to have the desired effect of encouraging him. His fingers moved to slide into her exposed womanhood and his head resumed its slow movement of the lips along the tip and the upper part of her length, saliva now visibly glazing in the shadowy illumination the bedroom had. She rubbed his cheek lovingly as it lightly bulged out from him going a little deeper, the thickness of her member enough to cause something like that to a youngster like him. But he didn’t cough or desist, sending pleasure through the very fiber of her being by displaying some of the very same enthusiasm she showed when she did that to him.

  * _I…it feels so good, Nier. You’re making a grown woman lose herself by stuffing those dexterous fingers in her while you do this… letting me slide in your mouth. It’s dreamy inside. You cheeky brat._



 

She couldn’t help her language. Her entire life was so confusing, she wasn’t even sure she was able to speak in regular, sweet, kind and loving way in bed. Expressing tenderness without a profanity thrown in it was something she was able to do with Emil, but not when her cock’s tip was throbbing from Nier sucking on it and drawing out her precum only for the latter to be swallowed. The slobbering and squishy noise was becoming audible, and Kainé felt a embarrassed, too. Moments after, she really lost it when she felt her tip rubbing on the much tighter passage that seemed to be the entrance deeper into Nier’s throat. She pulled her hips back, not wanting to be tempted to choke him, another pulse from her member coating Nier’s tongue in salty fluid that came from increasing excitement and pleasure. She pushed at the front of his face lightly, her member popping wetly out of his mouth.

  * _I told you to not do that, hah… aaahn… yo-you fucking pervert! Do you want me to really lose it and go crazy on your throat? You’re still just a kid! I ain’t gonna just sit there and let your freaking crazy overdo-all-the-things bratty mind lure me into traumatizing you by raping your fucking throat with my dick, you cheeky bastard!_



 

 

 

Nier just looked at her, surprised. Idly, he extended his tongue to lick at her tip, still extremely stiff in front of him, almost shaking from how much it twitched after being pulled out of his mouth. He even gently closed his mouth over the slit and a bit of her tip and sucked out the remnants of the last droplet of precum she bathed his tongue with.

It was certainly a first for her. A man who made her feel wanted as a whole. A man who didn’t mind pleasuring her cock directly. A man who told her she was beautiful while seeing that. A man she wanted to honestly drown in pleasure and make love to… And simultaneously one who wanted to hold back on his own experiences, and yet was so intent on pleasuring her.

  * _A…am I doing it right? You sound like you’re scolding me, but it’s just your usual way of speaking, so I don’t know if I’m doing okay._ – Nier responded indignantly.



 

Kainé tossed her head back. She rubbed his cheek in the same loving manner again while lightly pulling him forward this time, her tip rubbing over his soft cheek, just under his eye. She chuckled, smiling more brightly afterwards. There was a tender touch of that sound he managed to hear but once, the beautiful and crystal clear laugh of Kainé in joy. The one she seemed unable to give before, when they first met. Even now, it was rare, even now, it was short, but it made Nier feel something only seeing his sister happy made him feel before.

There was no correct word to describe this profoundly spiritual sense of accomplishment, nor there was a word to describe the odd sensation from it being mixed with the feeling of Kainé purposefully rubbing her wet, lightly dripping member across his cheeks, over his nose, and then teasingly along the line of his mouth. That sensation was noticeably fleshly, naughty, and physical.

  * _You’re really growing up to be an amazing man, Nier… Sure, you’re doing good. You need to work up on some things, and you need to grow a little to be able to do them, but you’re making me feel really, really good. Not just physically. This feeling of acceptance from you is giving me something I can’t even describe. I can’t hold back a sound trying to break free from deep inside me, but I don’t know how to voice that sound other than letting my potty mouth run you over._
  * _Kainé, why are you…_
  * _Making you messy? There’s a lot of fun thoughts included when you make someone messy. Some of them are just a tad darker than others, but it’s excusable in my case. Come up here. Come here._



 

This is where Tyrann would have something to say. But Tyrann wasn’t here to witness this young boy, shorter than her by almost a good one-and-a-half dozen centimeters by now, climbing over her body, getting poked on his naked tummy with her stiffness – and giving back the very same sensation. Tyrann wasn’t there to witness him  showing his face to her, coated with a sticky mixture of her precum and his saliva to make his pretty features glisten. She giggled again, placing both palms on the sides of his head. It was that moment. She had to either punch him or express some manner of honest tenderness in that moment, she knew quite well.

  * _I was waiting for someone like you for a long time. Then, I started… just-barely-less-than-look for someone like you when you were right under my nose, I guess. Some part of me just failed to notice, maybe, or maybe it was more complicated than that._
  * _I just… I do want you to be happy too, Kainé. There’s just something about you that made me feel that ever since I awakened after you took me out of there. It might’ve been a lot earlier than that, before we separated in the past, too. So I’m just trying my best to help you relax and feel good like you did for me._



Kainé listened to the boy’s ‘confession’ before placing a light kiss on his lips, then rolling her tongue across his cheek. Tasting his saliva and her precum while both cleaning him and messing him up further. It was his turn to cutely chuckle at the sensation of being licked that way. Despite being brave like this now, Kainé still felt just a little reluctant at simply kissing him normally, or touching him intimately, tenderly. Fighting against that reluctance, she pulled him to the side of herself, her member throbbing and aching, and trickles of juices running from her womanhood, empty, but ready to just slide any part of his body in. She cleaned his face with licks and kisses, then rubbed the back of his neck lovingly as she sucked on his collarbone and pulled their bodies closer together rolling herself atop of him much to his surprise.

  * _My mind’s completely on fire, too, so you’re going to have to make a little choice here. You can finish what you started, or I’m going to give in and have sex with you here and now, Nier. T…the classical way, just to be clear._



 

 

His head was resting a little further up, on a pillow, and it was Kainé’s turn to pull herself up along his body. On her knees, she straddled his chest, bringing her stiff member up and giving it a couple of strokes in front of his face. A string of precum descended on his chest with Nier’s eyes carefully following it.

  * _I liked your taste, Nier, but I’m almost getting the feeling you don’t mind mine. You’re getting very stiff again, too. You’ll get swallowed up at this rate, you know. This scary dirty-mouthed older woman is going to give you a wild ride if you keep sending such signals, you know._
  * _You said you wouldn’t tease me too much…_
  * _And you need to be just a tad more decisive, so I’m enforcing it._
  * _I need to repay what you did for me._
  * _Tsk, tsk… that’s not a girl will want to hear. You learned that already. Said the right thing before._



 

Small pause. They already knew each other well enough for him to understand in but a moment, though.

  * _I want to do it for you._
  * _Much better._



Kainé’s gloved fingertips stroked Nier’s face as she pulled herself closer, smiling at his declaration, the tip of her member rubbing once against his mouth.

  * _I’ll be moving a little this time to help you out. Put your hands on my ass and hook your thumbs to where you’ve been fingering before. If you pull them both out and smack my cheeks, it’s a sign I’m moving too roughly, or too much. If it’s okay, just gently rub inside of there._
  * _That’s perverted, Kainé._
  * _I’m practically fucking pristine today._



 

 

Nier managed a small laugh before Kainé slowly slid the crown of her cock inside of his mouth. His hands moved behind her, crossing with each other, to squeeze her soft, pert and shapely cheeks, pulling them apart and sliding alongside her womanhood until both of his thumbs managed to pry open the slit and push inside. It seemed like there were some sensitive areas pretty shallow in, and the thickness of two thumbs was stretching her rather pleasantly without even going deep inside. Combined with Nier’s responsiveness at starting to suck on her tip it forced a sweet moan out of Kainé. Her choice of position was on purpose – in this one, the swordswoman’s leverage wasn’t all that great so she couldn’t get overly enthusiastic with thrusting, but her hips did begin to gyrate, rhythmically, in a sensuous, alluring manner anyone watching from the back – or anyone who enjoyed watching oral sex being performed on a cock while the recipient moved in such a manner - would find titillating and arousing.

Nier couldn’t watch that delicious rump and her hips, but could notice the way Kainé rubbed herself off inside of his mouth by lightly moving against him. He could see her taut stomach and the lower slopes of her beautiful breasts, and at specific moments he could look up to see her expression and eyes. He felt his mouth being completely filled with Kainé’s relatively girthy cock, its length and width a little too much for the slightly underdeveloped youth to handle.

However, it wasn’t displeasing. It was the first time Nier felt himself being looked at with such a strong, flaming desire without feeling awkward or downright scared about it.

 

Both in the front and at the back, both her cock and her slit, were positively drooling now, and the aloof, harsh Kainé wasn’t holding back her pleased voice anymore. She just tried to make herself inaudible by not speaking and only communicating in little murmurs, moans, and gasps of pleasure.

Her ass was so soft in his hands and his thumbs were soaked. His exploring told him just how much pleasure could potentially be gained by sliding something sensitive inside of Kainé. The tightness was rather strong and her womanhood quivered against the shallow-buried fingers, and she was warm and squishy inside, with folds that made it seem like she wanted to tease even just his fingers. Nier couldn’t believe he was offered to feel the inside of that just a few moments ago.

His taste buds were being drowned in  the oddest mix of sweet, salty, and meaty he was every treated to, with the latter two rapidly growing even stronger as Kainé approached her orgasm. He felt his mouth being stretched and his throat occasionally being momentarily clogged up by her tip as she sought even more pleasure, but even the greedy and impatient hermaphrodite knew when to stop for now.

 

Finally he heard it, and she froze. The voice that escaped her mouth, the sound of being overwhelmed by pleasure and the sensation coming from her entire body. Rather than moving, she just accepted his own lips pushing themselves up and down her length, with the gentle suction becoming stronger, and his tongue rapidly swirling over and against the hermaphrodite’s length was probably the thing that pushed her past the point of climax.

 

Allowing him to give her the final push, to provide the pleasure she sought for so long seemed that much sweeter than just greedily take it. If her charming voice didn’t make him so horny, the fact she chose to let him continue rather than fuck his mouth in all the excitement she felt would probably not be lost on him, but moments later any thoughts were drowned by the realization he had to swallow quickly to be able to continue breathing, and that his tongue and tastebuds were completely dyed in the taste of Kainé’s proper seed. Chord after chord, wave after wave, Kainé’s body seemed even more backed-up and eager to fill a willing hole with semen than his own was. The texture of it seemed somehow a little different than what he shot inside of her mouth earlier, but he couldn’t bring himself to hate it. Burying his fingers deeper inside of her caused Kainé to barely hold back her hips and not at restrain her voice, the sea of profanities mixing up with moans no longer coherent to him as she eventually just bit her own hand to stop the flood.

 

The “stopped” one was only the flood out of her mouth and not the one that coated the inside of his, however. The last dribbles were still feeding him her seed. She must’ve been really backed up, and it also showed the difference between an adolescent and an adult, he guessed. The strong orgasm coursing through her left Kainé with staring dreamily at the wall before she lowered her gaze to Nier and recognized that it must’ve not been easy to keep breathing like this. Pulling herself out and away from him, she used the somewhat shaky suspension provided by her knees and his fingers hooked inside of her to avoid just plopping her ass down on his stomach, which was now being filled with her seed.

  * _Nieeeer, you made me come!_
  * _Ugh… *cough*… that was the purpose of this, right?_
  * _I don’t believe this Nier made me come like this. You’ve been holding back on me, haven’t you?_



The boy seemed confused at her sudden change in behavior, and the sound of her voice.

  * _K-Kainé?!_



The swordswoman chuckled for a moment and tried to settle down from the height of pleasure.

  * _Sorry, I’m just way too giddy. It felt so good. It’s like you have a magic mouth that cures stress. And a tasty lollipop for a cock. Well, it’s too big to be a lollipop, but that’s fine with me._



 

 

Slowly, she pulled herself off of his thumbs, gently squishing her asscheeks against his other fingers – on purpose, obviously – then plopped down next to him, looking at his flushed face as he continued to breathe heavily.

  * _You’re hard again, Nier. That’s… flattering._
  * _Of course I’ll get hard if you make these kinds of sounds and do these sorts of things, Kainé. Your butt in my hands? My thumbs inside you? You making those sweet moans?_
  * _Your backbone growing right in front of my eyes makes me horny, kiddo._
  * _E-eehhh?!_
  * _No, seriously. You’re still hard, and we only tried the other part a little bit. I take it you still want to stop a little short of actual sex because you’re a serious guy like this, but we can still have quite a lot of fun._
  * _It’s not like I… don’t want to try it after feeling your…_
  * _Pussy._
  * _… that, but I just think it’s not right until we get to know each other a little better and our feelings a little more deeply._
  * _Well, so long as you’re not being a fucking tease about it, I won’t try to do anything tricky or traumatizing. I care about you, Nier, I just wanted to show you it can be good. And you showed me it could be great, too. Thank you. I really… needed this._



 

Nier looked to the side at the face of Kainé who just looked like she was going to break down into either a cry or a giddy laughter. Her eyes were just a little teared up, but she didn’t seem sad.

[“I think that if I have sex with you with the right timing, Nier… I will really feel whole. In this fucking bullshit world where nothing’s worth much, I have something… someone in front of me that I think can make me feel whole.”]

 

She pulled herself closer to him, and gently altered their positions so he was slid lower. Her breasts were now at Nier’s mouth level, but she still leaned in and whispered.

  * _Put your hand around my waist and stuff your fingers in my pussy, Nier. I’m going to make this cheeky fucking cock of yours all happy and tuckered out again._
  * _I guess doing it with someone close to me makes my body think it still wasn’t enough._
  * _No worries. Trust me, I know all about how *that* feels. Mostly from just right now._



Nier managed to break through his initial reservations about doing these sorts of things with Kainé and finally smile, just before the taller swordswoman teasingly reminded him of her instructions by pressing her breast into his cheek and rubbing her nipple insistently at it and the corner of his mouth.

 

It felt… different than what they’ve done before. Nier gulped audibly to get the remnants of Kainé’s seed swallowed and opened his mouth for the hermaphrodite’s breast, all the while pondering how being cuddled up to her like this felt deceptively safe and pleasant. Wrapping a hand around her waist just like she instructed, his fingertips once against slid down the smooth but rather taut, if feminine, buttocks of his long-time companion. He shuddered a bit as he was reminded just *how* feminine Kainé’s body could be by the double sensation of his fingers rubbing across her womanhood and her nipple sliding into his open mouth, but at the same time, Kainé’s gloved hand wrapped itself around Nier’s once-again stiffening length, her grip pleasant but tight.

 

It was close, and intimate, and a protest to the way Kainé had to handle her desires almost every single time up until that point. Rather than stroking her own length, her hand was wrapped around another’s. Rather than driving off the excitement that didn’t match her body or her view of herself by stroking her length alone, Kainé allowed another person to try and satisfy her female side with fingers rubbing her inside out and lips wrapped around her nipple. Nier attempted to make it seem unlike childish suckling, rolling his tongue across the sensitive nub and her areola and trying to find out what sort of attention gave Kainé more pleasure in this arrangement. She kissed the top of his head and quickened the pace of her stroking, although she was careful not to overdo it at first. He might’ve still been sensitive after orgasming earlier, and she didn’t want to squeeze or twist her hand too suddenly when his fingers found a good spot, which Nier seemed to do on a more and more frequent basis. With several digits to work with, even blindly, he could stroke along the sensitive lips all the way up to her – just slightly altered by the proximity to her male ‘package’ – clitoris, fingers dipping into her wetness and releasing light squishy noises.

 

With Nier not exactly being able to speak and Kainé trying to focus on both enjoying herself and making sure Nier enjoyed himself as well, they didn’t talk much. Laying there pressed up against each other for quite a while, perspiration dripping off both of them lightly, glistening bodies swaying and pressing against one another as they kept seeking each other’s touch. Nier’s fingers tried working independently of each other by teasing the bundle of erogenous zones that appeared right above Kainé’s pussy, thumb rubbing across her clit and higher up into her testicles, while his fingers’ pace of plunging in and out of her was steadily increasing, the boy’s awareness of the area he was exploring and intimate knowledge of it increasing even though he couldn’t really see what he was doing. His mouth continued sucking at the nipple placed inside of it while his other hand raised to Kainé’s other breast, mildly interrupting her skillful stroking of his length to enjoy the sensation of her soft chest filling out his palm completely and then lightly overflowing it.

 

Nier closed his eyes and allowed his senses of touch, taste, and scent to be overwhelmed by his immersion with the white-haired beauty’s body. Her breathing was also audible, and while relaxed, it seemed definitely well-pleased.

This was different. Even though he wasn’t in place he could call a house and even though he was doing it with someone older than himself, mostly at their pace, what he and Kainé were doing was for all intents and purposes a good and intimate experience for him. One that made him feel like he was at home.

 

One he could stop if he wanted. Despite the initial feeling of intimidation, he had no doubt in his mind that Kainé would respect his wishes in regards to how far they should go, especially after she’s been satisfied at last.

Of course, by now, he hardly wanted to stop.

Nier’s body shuddered as his lips released a small sound, letting Kainé’s breasts go to tenderly kiss along her collarbones and neck. She leaned in to finally place their lips together, and this time it was finally his turn to try and explore the woman’s soft and warm mouth with his tongue. The remnants of the tastes of their respective ejaculations clung to their tongues, cheeks, and saliva a bit, mixing them into an unrecognizable but pleasant reminder of them performing these sorts of acts on one another, but Nier kissed softly even as the movement of his fingers against her body was slowly becoming erratic, especially when he felt Kainé’s passage squeeze and quiver against his fingertips more tightly and greedily than before, stickiness coating the digits buried inside of her as her walls clung to him more than before. Slowly, Kainé slid her lips off of Nier’s and gently pushed his head back into her cleavage, murmuring something and gasping in pleasure as it seemed another sweet wave of release washed through her, and the young white-haired man’s lips sought out her nipple again.

He didn’t stop, but it was evident to any onlooker that he’s been fighting off his own orgasm for a while. There was no onlookers nor were there going to be any, but even Kainé, preoccupied as she was, could sense it by now.

Her hand did not desist. She was quite aware that a man would be pushed over the edge quicker with an alternating pace rather than a steady one, so she slowed down to rub her fingertip over the crown of his member only to speed up suddenly, sending more shudders through his body and causing his teeth to brush on her nipple just barely, causing her to yelp and squeeze at his length even further, furiously pumping his member as she wanted to give him an intense and quick experience for his second climax at her hands.

 

That was just too much for him to endure. This time, Kainé got to watch as his member twitched and started pumping out the young, pearly white seed all over his taut, fair stomach, with a little bit on her glove and forearm as well as his thighs. She made an extra point of going into the starts of his orgasm still rapidly jacking him off, then slow down into squeezing and milking tugs only to pick up the pace to make the sensation prolonged even as his climax seemed to be dying down.

 

She noticed that this time, despite the sensation, Nier was very mindful of what his mouth was doing and his fingers never stopped pleasuring her womanhood. She cooed at both the sight of his young manhood coating them with the second ejaculation and the realization of how conscious and considerate he was of how she felt through it all. She gyrated her hips, grinding her asscheeks into his forearm and palm and forcibly sliding his fingers left and right inside of her to produce an even more audible noise, making a point of showing off how wet she’s gotten. Ensuring Nier would be treated to the extra service of final, tender tugs on his manhood, Kainé slowly rolled off of him and to the side, easing her nipple out of the younger man’s mouth.

 

This was intense. Both of her sides had orgasmed by now, giving her some much-needed release, but the sheer hunger she felt when placed opposite someone she treasured in a situation like this was making it difficult for her to settle down. Her hard was thumping inside of her chest and she placed her slightly seed-coated hand against where Nier’s hands and mouth just fondled and teased her, breathing heavily. Looking past her breasts would reveal another tremendous erection, but they were both aware of that throughout most of the contact they’ve just shared. Kainé just took the focus off of that part for the resulting play. She squeezed her palm into a fist, placing it against her chest, a little to the left right over her heart which raged inside of there, informing her of its own attitude towards what just happened.

 

Once again, she was at that point where during their adventure three and a half years ago, she’d just start punching and kicking him, and then she’d stop just short of finishing that with a kiss. Right now she was fighting off the desire of informing a sixteen year old boy lost in time that she was in love with him instead. It was too early for this sort of a declaration, and she was frankly quite aware that Nier needed time and, most of all, wanted to probably earn her respect and gratitude before potentially being told this.

That was the promise they made.

_\- Kainé, you’re still… Well, it’s still stiff._

_\- Yeah. The whole what works on what deal is a little… more complicated with me. You were great, Nier, I’m just too… backed up and too easy to get going, you get me?_

_\- I think I do? Should I…_

_\- No. Just stand on the bed for a moment._

 

Nier chuckled at the suggestion, himself taking deep breaths as he tried to not pant from exhaustion and intensity of going twice in a row.

_\- E-easier said than done, you know._

_\- It’s good if you’re tired from it. Makes for a better sense of release at the end, better afterglow, gets you to sleep easier, tells everyone they’ve done a good job. It’d explain why some people treat it almost as a sport. Not me, though. Nier?_

_\- Yes?_

_\- I do want you to relax a bit, though it’s no trouble if you’d want to go one more time, but I do need to take care of this, so I wanted to ask you something._

Nier didn’t respond, seemingly waiting for the question itself, so Kainé checked if he didn’t just fall asleep before posing it.

_\- Would you… watch me do it? Trying to get myself off?_

Nier’s eyes widened momentarily, but then his expression returned.

_\- I, uhhh… I’ll definitely want to go again if I watch that for too long. And then it’d feel really weird because of how sensitive and floppy it’ll be, right?_

_\- Yeah, going three times in a row may seem like a bad idea, but it’d make me happy if you watched me. Even happier if you were ready to go again after that._

_\- Okay. I can do it. I didn’t think you were…_

_A sudden elbow to the side silenced Nier, gentle and playful as it was._

_\- Calling girls perverted when they offer to show you their body while doing one of the most intimate actions possible won’t get you any points, you know._

 

They both looked down Kainé’s body as she slowly slid off her gloves, squeezing her breasts and rubbing her nipples over momentarily after leaving them both laid out on her stomach. She then reached down to her throbbing member, wrapping her naked, slender fingertips around it to tug up and down. Noticing Nier was watching, she made a point of drawing deeper breaths and pushing her hips off the bed, virtually thrusting into the embrace of her fingers as if trying to tease the boy with the visual stimuli involved.

The eroticism of such a feminine figure doing this being lost on Nier because of limited experience and a mind which avoided sexuality up until now was probably the only excuse he had for not having his mouth wide open and his manhood trying to push itself into yet another erection.

Kainé knew this wasn’t going to be a long session. The stimulation she felt just by being embraced by Nier combined with the pleasant sensation washing over her entire body from her female orgasm gave her quite a push on the way towards that ‘other’ orgasm as well. She had to bite her lip and slow down the moment she tried to intensify the sensations through stroking two-handed and thrusting into her hands, because of how irritating and overpowering the sensation was at that moment. Taking several deep breaths, Kainé sat back up.

_\- Okay, giddy up and stand up._

_\- W-what fooorrr?_

_\- Stop being so bratty, damn it. Extra service is required under those circumstances or I’ll feel like I’m getting unfairly much out of this. Don’t worry, I’ll be gentle, and then you can watch me from the other end of the bed._

 

Listening for once, Nier got up on his feet, his mostly softened member on display as Kainé slid a little bit closer to him. She returned to stroking her length at a moderate pace while tenderly placing his tip at the entrance to her mouth. Nier’s shudder told her how sensitive he was, so rather than tease him overmuch she made sure her suction was constant, tender, and easy to get used to. Nier was treated to the wonderful ‘service’ of having the last dregs of his seed sucked out of his urethra while watching Kainé’s beautiful body on vivid display, with the added treat of realization that she was using their prolonged contact as an additional incentive to masturbate.

Even so, with her mouth making the occasional audible slurp, he found it a little bit uncomfortable to keep his length inside of her mouth. Not only was she apparently really getting into it again, Nier himself was beginning to feel his member stir somewhat, and dealing with arousal after already having two orgasms would’ve been troublesome.

Pulling himself away from her, the young white-haired man did as she suggested, sitting at the other end of the bed only to watch Kainé’s hands present and explore her body at her own leisure. It was clear she was doing more than masturbating – putting on a show just so that he’d get even more excited and notice both her normal, feminine assets and the exotic allure those assets combined with a cock – one for now at least larger than his – presented. Nier knew intimately that Kainé’s hands never grew excessively worn or calloused over her battles, probably due to the regenerative influence from the Shade she carried until recently, and the way these fingers wrapped around her length was appealing partially because he also knew just how *strong* her hands were and how skilled. Nier realized Kainé must’ve gotten quite decent at stroking a cock simply due to self-practice, being unable to control the male side of her desires in the past.

Right now the reason was of secondary importance compared to the striking contrast of the fingers of one hand squeezing at her breast, presenting its natural and delightful softness while the fingers of the other wrapped tightly around her shaft, stroking it up and down until the well-sized member was spewing, then just dripping fluid from the tip and twitching intensely at her stroking.

Kainé’s precum made her member seem as ready to engage in sex and indulge itself as the womanhood below it was, trickles of fluid having made small, but visible glistening lines around her thighs and buttocks which she stopped masturbating to show off when she noticed Nier staring at them. Lifting her small testicles and far-from-small shaft up to give him a glimpse of the source of that natural wetness, her womanhood giving the occasional visible muscular contraction that seemed to start at her taut abdomen and cause another bead of precum to appear at the tip of her member.

Her sexes really weren’t *entirely* separate in their arousal, but for now Kainé just focused on removing the final thing distracting her so much, trying to douse the intense urge she felt in the proximity of the man she desired for so long.

 

Looking him in the eye, Kainé realized how different Nier’s look was to almost anyone and everyone else who saw the contrast in her form.

And, biting down on her lip, she reveled in his gaze. After a couple sharp breaths, she decided to say what she should say under circumstances like this.

_\- You’re not… afraid or anything, are you? There’s this confusion in your eyes combined with… something else. I love seeing and feeling that other thing when our eyes meet, but I don’t want to scare you._

 

Nier nodded.

_\- It’s… all right, Kainé. I was a bit worried when we started doing it, but… for some reason, I feel safe now. I know you won’t hurt me. And I still think you’re striking and beautiful._

Smiling, Kainé took her finger off of her breast to wiggle a finger at Nier in a ‘come hither’ motion, suggesting she wanted to study the expression on his face and the reaction from his body even closer. Sliding towards her, Nier complied, stopping for a moment in shock when her hand moved from slow strokes she performed while they spoke back to the frantic tugging and jerking from before. She slowed down, peeking over her breasts and member at his own body while he slid even closer, more than halving the distance from before.

From this close, Kainé discovered his member was already twitching and trying to force itself into another erection. If nothing else, this confirmed that – for whatever reason – her and Nier were sexually compatible, but she knew that compatibility wouldn’t be tested tonight, not until the very end such experimentation could’ve carried, anyway.

She tossed her head back with a groan as she seemed to have lost the sync with her own body, the orgasm seeming to almost envelop her only to whisker away at a mistimed series of strokes. Biting her lip down she realized she grew sensitive to the point of being able to feel Nier’s breath on her.

It was getting closer.

_\- N-Nier?!_

_\- I… didn’t have the time to try and taste your other side properly. I think that might help you, too._

 

She wanted to erupt in a series of curses, but the young man’s breath was virtually on her groin now, pacifying her and making her testicles almost shiver as they seemed to churn in response to the offer. Kainé lowered her hand to pull them up a little.

_\- I… never tried this kind of stimulation to both sides at once. So it’s going to be intense even for me. If I thrash around too much, stop… Actually I’m not sure if I’ll be able to control myself if you stop at the wrong moment. Are you *sure* you’re okay with it? Are you sure you want to do this?_

_\- It’s… going to be a little painful if **you** squeeze someone with your thighs, I guess…_

She did suppose it was not a frequent issue – damaging somebody by squeezing your thighs from climaxing due to intensity of sensations while getting oral sex – but when one reached a supernatural level of strength thanks to constant conflict and a previous fusion with a Shade, it was a real possibility. Nier was more durable than your regular human, but…

 

She couldn’t help her hips and thighs moving up and forward, smooching the young boy right across the face and then over his lips with her moist nether ones, causing them both to giggle.

_\- … Maybe I should go down on my hands and knees, and then…_

_\- But I won’t be able to see everything if you do that!_

_\- … Fucking around without actual sex is more problematic than I thought… I have an idea._

_\- If I put one hand on your thigh, and we place the other somewhere where the force of any squeeze wouldn’t go on me, then…_

_\- Why wouldn’t you just hold my thighs back with both ha… Oh. Ooooh. Really?_

 

Nier blushed a bit. It was his turn to finally slap her in a playful attack.

_\- I won’t be able to stop myself if I look at you, and if you make any of those sounds you did earlier. I mean… I can’t say why, but there are moments where your voice is just…_

_\- Okay. Okay, nevermind. It’s… a huge compliment, but I worry we’re gonna end up teasing each other all night and then when I wake up if you have a morning wood I’m going to take advantage. So let’s try to finish, shall we? Going for one orgasm each, then trying to sleep. Scoot back to the bottom of the bed._

 

Moving away from the pillows, Kainé hooked one leg around the bed pillar and the edge of the frame. It was going to hurt her hips if she overdid that, but evidently it was necessary. It shouldn’t matter that much, either. She knew she wasn’t going to last long.

Nier placed his hand on her thigh. She shivered as this time neither of them even bothered pulling her sack out of the way. His nose just nuzzled it away as he placed his lips against her womanhood.

It was obvious he didn’t have much experience in that action yet. His tongue slid inside of her instead of exploring, and he was drinking her juices faster than she could produce them, but the way his tongue wriggled and lapped at her insides and looking down her body to see the young man’s pretty face buried between her thighs was a sensation that was just indescribable to someone as frustrated and self-denied as Kainé was before that point.

Her thighs tried to squeeze, the bed frame and the boy’s arm stopping her from clamping her legs around his head. Both of her hands were lowered to her shaft now, rhythmically pumping up and down as she attempted to aid him in simply overpowering her with sensations and utterly blowing her mind. Stroke after stroke seemed to slowly build up a pace that most people couldn’t produce when in the throes of pleasure and passion, and she felt his tongue buried inside of her, being clamped down on and squeezed for all it was worth inside of her.

_\- G…guuuh…_

Was the only audible sound she could make other than the ones that came from her womanhood being made out with and her member releasing squishy noises at being furiously stroked. There was another sound coming from inside the room, other than her own sexual noises and ragged breathing, and she tried to give her eyes focus as she looked down on Nier, who was observing her despite her member  and wide-spread thighs taking quite a bit of his vision away.  

She almost mewled and felt contractions passing through her whole body when she realized the other rhythm came from Nier’s stroking of his own sensitive, moist member with the hand he kept free.

She wanted this to last forever, but she knew she’d just go crazy if she tried to continue holding back from this on that particular day.

_\- N…ngghhhh…Nhhhnieeer!_

This time, it was comprehensible, but followed by a shameless, audible, and loud yell of pleasure coming from deep inside of her as her legs tried clamping down again. Kainé made many quiet or loud noises when experiencing orgasms during her life, but none sounded as relieved and pleased as the one right there and then. A squeeze going through her abdomen and centering at the pussy being tongue-fucked by the person who brought her to a simultaneous and intense climax, her member shot out a load that arced at being pumped with such extreme pressure and fell down all over the boy’s naked back, smaller following-up ropes simply shooting everywhere starting with her thighs and stomach and including Nier’s face.

The gloopy and sticky cream that was being pumped through her cock and out into the open air almost seemed to seek out more of his skin to paint and coat with its melty heat.

She felt like she ejaculated just as much as on her first time that day and couldn’t believe how good it felt. Warmth spread through her whole body as it combined with a pleasant relaxation, but hidden underneath those were mind-blowing and intense muscular contractions accompanying her orgasm… the plethora of sensations overwhelming her body made Kainé entirely forget she was a guest in this house, and even her care for Emil’s feelings and well-being was pushed aside in favor of just completely losing herself in this orgasmic storm happening under her waist.

It was too much, eventually. She had to pull away from him and she did, noticing there were cracks on the bedpost she used to stop her legs from clamping down… apparently this was no joking matter, but all Kainé could do was think about how amazing this feeling was, and look down at the boy between and just a little in front of her legs, shuddering in pleasure.

_\- N-nhhh-nieer, I l…_

 

[„Can’t say that. Not yet.”]

Her leg muscle twitched in the natural reaction she was also trying to fight in this situation.

[“CAN’T FUCKING KICK HIM EITHER, DUMBASS.”]

 

_\- I… lasted so short, you didn’t… hah..hah… have the time to properly bring yourself anywhere close to coming… hah… wanna try something soft that’ll help out with your round three? We… we really should stop after, but I can’t let you try sleeping with your weapon ready to shoot…_

 

Saving the situation, Kainé watched Nier try to experimentally stroke his mildly floppy, but rather erect, member despite its sensitivity. She leaned forward a bit and spitted, spewing her drool in her cleavage, raising the palm she just used to stroke herself off and rubbing the gooey mess into her cleavage for lubrication.

_\- Y..you should try sliding it between them. We’re going to totally need a bath after this. I, ugh… Just not together, okay?_

Nier beamed her a smile at her trying so hard to keep composed and ‘in the game’ for his sake, then looked back at the bed post.

_\- I think it might need some rep…_

_\- Nier. Tits. **Now**._

_-Okay. Okay._

 

Slowly he pulled himself up and over her body, his cock dipping against her stomach and dribbling out a bit over it. She placed her arms on his thighs and helped pull him along until they could align his not-rigid but erect member with her cleavage, at which point she raised her hands to squeeze her breasts together, letting him slowly slide between them. His expression when he did told her all she needed to know.

_\- It’s… really easier on it in there than me trying with my hand…_

_\- Mhm._

 

Panting a little, Kainé had to let Nier do the honors for now, needing a moment to recompose himself.

_\- I… wasn’t too loud, was I?_

_\- I told you your voice is…_

_\- We’re not exactly alone in this house. Heck, Seafront’s reasonably cl…_

_Nier pushed his finger against her lips, and used his other hand to lightly pinch her nipple. She gasped audibly._

_\- No teasing. And we’ll apologize later if we caused trouble._

 

Her skin felt smooth, like satin or velvet, as he plunged his young member through her well-ripened, well-slickened cleavage with her hands squeezing her breasts down on him from both sides. She tried gently shaking them together in rhythm with his experimental movements, and that seemed to earn her a little sound of pleasure from Nier himself, so Kainé continued aiding him with burying his length between her breasts for as much as her still shuddering, twitching, and orgasm-drained body allowed her.

_\- It’s really amazing we’re still going at it… I didn’t think people could endure doing it so much… even though it wasn’t an outrageous amount of time…_

_\- It’s because your body’s so erotic, Kainé._

_\- Awww. So I take it mister swordsman won’t have any issues with trying more of it in the future?_

She squeezed down on his sensitive length a little harder, causing her breasts to squish and spill over both his shaft and her own grasp of them. She was tempted to lick and suck on his tip when she got it to emerge, but that’d probably be too torturous if she did it for a prolonged period of time.

Instead, she let go of her breasts for a moment, showing him the valley of her cleavage thoroughly wet with her drool, some of her seed, and his own dripping precum before squeezing her breasts back together and gently rubbing them up and down, stopping the motion of his own hips for a bit and then sending them into a faster pace than before.

 

She was right. His body was protesting about continuing, then protesting louder about stopping. There was a sense of being drawn to Kainé now, body and heart both, and it felt like he couldn’t be satisfied or sleep soundly until he gave in to that desire this one last time.

 

 

 

 

 

In the basement below the mansion, Emil was now together with Sebastian, finishing sorting through the documents and analyzing Beastbain for possible upgrades on it.

Sebastian had an awkward, both worried and comforting, smile on his face.

_\- It’s a little rude of them to make it so obvious… Are you feeling all right, master? You could stop them. We don’t even know what caused them to…_

_\- No, Sebastian. It’s okay. It feels like this had to happen sooner or later._

_\- Do you feel… lonely, Master? Betrayed? You and miss Kainé seemed pretty close when  I saw you, but I dared not interpret that…_

 

Emil tilted his head at Sebastian.

Of course. His butler forgot Nier. Kainé was always like a sister to him, and in the bunch of misfits that could almost pass for a family, she certainly took to that role well.

But if there was someone he found himself attracted to, mentally and, when he saw him but before his mind adjusted to his new body, physically, it was the man they traveled with. And he couldn’t even remember whether that was true or not.

_\- No, no. Kainé’s like a sister to me. And now that my body’s like… this, I don’t think I can love someone in a non-platonic way. So if they ended up together it’d probably be for the best. I’m glad I can give them a safe spot they can try to connect in so intimately. And it’s not a bother if they make these sounds out of enjoyment._

 

Indeed. The documents Kainé brought in proved she was serious.

Emil would smile if he could do that for real. Some of the medical facilities they were going to visit apparently had a focus on fertility treatments.

It was time for Emil to grow up. To realize that if Kainé was going to be a parent, ever, there was only one person she’d accept as the other one.

 

 

 

 

 

Nier had his eyes closed as he plunged his length inbetween Kainé’s soft, continuously rubbing tits.

It felt like the perfect balm, not irritating his sensitive member but allowing him to climb towards the climax all the same.

She tried *not* to take in his expression and body language too much. They’d be doomed if either part of her got horny again. Risks of heart attack may become real.

 

Catching the obvious enough hints, however, Kainé leaned in and arched her back to change the angle at which he pumped inbetween her breasts. Finally opening her mouth and trying to tease his tip as it emerged. A couple more audible, squishy thrusts and almost as audible slurps from her and he was pushed well over the edge, returning the favor of painting her face a little whiter before she managed to properly lock her mouth against his tip so his orgasm spilled over her tongue and the inside of her mouth instead.

 

She tried to swallow quickly in order to not revel in the taste. Nier was obviously completely tired and blissed out, panting audibly and shuddering. With a gentle smile, she used the edge of the covers to gently wipe out the mess between her breasts so it wouldn’t become a problem. Nier understood they could finish at last, and slid off of her to drop at her side. She quickly covered them both and wrapped an arm around him. Already sweaty as they were, the additional heat didn’t matter, just cementing the sensation that even if they didn’t have sex in the classical sense, they certainly became thoroughly intimate and *finally* satisfied.

Nier finally learned how sexuality was supposed to be, and in a way so did Kainé. She felt wanted, she felt desired, and she felt at home. She felt connected to the young man wrapping his arms back against her body to accept it as his pillow for the night. She closed her eyes and smiled, content to let sleep take her.

Nier felt at home, and Kainé…

Kainé took many, many steps, one after the other, to finally, for the first time in her life perhaps, really feeling whole – fulfilled, and happy.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really wanted the story to reach this point at the very least before I took a hiatus. Yes, I wanted Nier and Kainé to finally get down and dirty after the - hopefully well-paced - preparation they've had since his resurrection.
> 
> Finding out there's both a 'loophole' to produce some fanfiction in between the incoming Automata title and the not-widely-known ending E of Grimoire Nier meant that, rather than writing a Kainé-Nier oneshot, I could decide to instead let them build up to it naturally. Not from point zero, and with one side certainly being impatient and eager, but hopefully in a way that kept their relation heartwarming after all the sadness and angst of the games' events.
> 
> It doesn't mean the world they're in isn't still full of bitterness, but at the very least I finally managed to produce something that hopefully adds - along with plenty of spice - that one spoon of honey Nier very much needed.
> 
> Hopefully in the future I'll get to see more pairings based on endings where both Nier and Kainé are alive.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it and feel free to comment as always!


	12. 3c - Dim Sunshine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kainé has to fully face the implications of the time they've spent as a group so far, but with a strong enough friendship, emotional turmoil should not be as challenging as the trips that lay ahead of them.

The sensation that was once well-known to humans, and sometimes praised as a perfect way to be awakened – the feeling of the first rays of sunshine falling on one’s face – was by far and wide lost to replicants in habitable areas because of the changes to climate also involving the formation of near-perpetual areas of night and day. Darkness came from cloudiness far more often than if came from the movement of the sun, and this period of time was no different.

 

There were no scientists to explain that particular change, and Emil’s mansion wasn’t placed in an area where sun would easily pierce through the windows and serve as a wakeup call. Kainé, nevertheless, felt a warmth very much akin to that of the sun both on her skin and somewhere deep, deep inside when she woke up on that particular day. A small yawn and stretch proved to her that she still wasn’t alone in the room, and that either she needed a bath, or the room required some airing out after the yesterday’s events. Standing up, she noticed the flower she put there yesterday, smiling at the implication that little thing held for her.

Two important people in her life gave Kainé a Lunar Tear, or a whole bunch of the flowers.

Her expression soured. She could now remember one more memory that was left empty in terms of his presence.

Just after they met Emil for the first time. Perhaps not directly, but soon enough.

To think at first she had fun battling that Shade. That massive thing that just wouldn’t go down no matter what kind of damage they’ve dealt.

Kainé squeezed her hands into fists moments after putting her underwear on. What would she do if something like that creature attacked now? Their hope would have to rest primarily on Emil…

 

She allowed herself to be petrified then. She thought she’d simply be a goner, she never really considered what the final result of that choice would be, but she saved Emil and Nier in the process. Then, it felt like a restless dream, as if she was placed in a void. Barely noticing the ridiculous passage of time when she was awakened, only to see that neither of the two she thought she was sacrificing her life to save looked the same as she remembered them.

 

Emil lost his body, and Nier…

Nier grew up, and how. She even remarked on it, and that was before he gave her that flower.

That must’ve been the first time she noticed that feeling of being drawn towards him, if only barely. It took her far, far longer to realize what it really was.

[“And I confessed it in such a lovely manner, too. Kicks to the gut, smacks and punches to the face. I’m such a romantic.”]

 

 

 

This meant she already recovered quite the number of memories, but was still far away from getting to the important one; the events that happened with and to Nier right after Emil seemed to die and she kicked him around to bring them both back to shape.

 

She’d enjoy and treasure the tender moments she remembered, and probably some fights as well, but that was really the most important thing… and it just wouldn’t come back to her.

Then, again.

 

Was that really so important with her having found *him*?

 

 

Standing between two men – Sebastian as she just opened the door, and the one behind her awakening in the bed at last – might’ve been one of the more awkward experiences of her life. Not because Sebastian now learned she slept with someone biologically seven or more years her junior, but because his face was obviously unsurprised at the fact.

 

With everyone having forgotten Nier, and she being, for some reason, the only one lucky enough to remember at least something about his existence right from the moment she met him once more – right from the moment her will to fight was rewarded by that odd entity – Kainé could well enough realize what were her feelings in regards to that person, especially after torturing herself for three years trying to remember.

 

The issue was she never really considered Emil’s or Yonah’s potential feelings on the matter. Heck, for all intents and purposes she was barely considerate of Nier’s own attitude. Even in a doomed world with nobody to judge her in this life or the next, it felt like she was doing something bad and inconsiderate.

It wouldn’t matter if it was perfect strangers, but Kainé knew Nier would give virtually anything for Yonah’s happiness, and she herself wanted Emil to be the best off he could possibly be.

Granted, she couldn’t exactly explain the situation to Yonah now. She could barely explain it to Emil, and not at all so to Nier.  While it’d be assuming quite a lot, she could reasonably consider herself to be possibly tangled in a little web now, and only the fact Nier was forgotten by the world made her assured he hasn’t left any broken hearts elsewhere – the same couldn’t be said for Yonah. Kainé herself tried to be upfront and brutal when it came to such things, and with her ‘freak’ body, she certainly didn’t have many fans amongst the Replicants, in Aerie or elsewhere.

_\- I have prepared a bath for young Miss’ friends, although if you wished to bathe separately, the other person would have to wait a short while for sufficient amount of…_

_\- Let Nier go first. I’ll dress up in something and go talk to Emil._

_\- If you wish so. I think the young master is doing well enough, but perhaps a friend would be required to see if it is but a mask._

_\- Thank you, Sebastian._

 

Following Sebastian out of the room, turning for just one moment to beam a comforting smile at the room behind her, Kainé went to where she kept her clothes, thankful a bit that this large house only had four residents.

Well, now that it’s been cleared of Shades several times over, that is.

 

 

A knock on the door brought Emil out of his quiet pondering.

_\- Come in…_

 

Predictably,  it was Kainé who walked in. Wearing the same blue lab coat she once tried on only for it to be cut up in several spots by the Shades they fought against on that day. It seemed patched up, but definitely less functional than before, so using it around the house kind of made sense.

 

They just stared at one another for several long moments, the silence almost heavy with both of their desires to say… something,

 

Kainé clenched her fists again, a noise like a quiet and guttural groan coming up from within her throat.

[“Say something, you goddamn coward. Why is it I always stay quiet when time comes to try and vocalize this kind of stuff? I’d fight for these two, I’d kill for them, I’d die for them, but when it comes to talking about this crappy who feels what about whom shit, the most I can do is call Nier a siscon and punch him.”]

 

_\- Sorry for leaving you with work and then doing something that might’ve been distracting you from it, Emil. No, not that. Sorry about doing things under your roof in the first place without…_

_\- Kainé, it’s all right. Besides, I’ve seen you might’ve made that… sort of decision when I read through the information we’ve obtained. One of the places we’re going to visit was primarily a… ‘that’ sort of clinic, so I sort of understood things might happen that didn’t involve you and Yonah. And if you’re worried about my feelings on the matter, well… I wasn’t exactly sensitive or considerate of yours either when I learned what happened to *her*, was I?_

 

She gave a weak smile at that.

_\- Being insensitive about suggesting something that might’ve helped save humans to provoke loveless rutting and breeding by a person who you wouldn’t exactly call the romantic type in the past… Is kind of different to being insensitive to someone inside a group of comrades._

_\- You’re like family to me, Kainé. This might’ve started as me just projecting the sister I almost forgot on you, but it’s a quite honest feeling now._

_\- Damn it, Emil, that just means I should’ve been considerate of you even more!_

 

Emil looked at her again, then tilted his head.

_\- You shouldn’t need to, Kainé. I can adjust and just treat everyone in here as family. I can’t even fully recall what it was all like in the past, you know? And with my body like this, I could never express any feelings the way it seems you did._

_\- … Crap. Damnit._

_\- Kainé?_

_\- We’ve got so caught up in everything, it feels like we completely forgot about trying to bring your bo…_

_\- It doesn’t really matter anymore, Kainé. I don’t think bringing my old body back is possible with this world’s magic and technology. Besides, I’ve grown to accept the way things are. I can see the world now, at the very least. I’m just glad I met you again._

_\- But then, you can’t really tell if your feelings…_

_\- I won’t miss something I can’t feel anymore, Kainé. Besides…_

 

Emil got up, floating across the floor before setting down in front of Kainé.

_\- For three and a half years… you were the one who kept just barely clinging on to that void left behind when we lost our memory of him. You’re the one who suffered from being unable to express, identify, much less satisfy your feelings while I… Despite being a powerful magical weapon, I couldn’t really pierce that veil. I wanted to find Weiss, you, and maybe *someone I didn’t remember*.  And then, we managed to get that person back, but… That person, in turn, only remembered you. If this isn’t fate and if this isn’t… fair, somehow, I don’t know if anything could be pointed to and called ‘fair’ anymore._

_\- It’s crap. You know it is. Neither of us should be forced to suffer or give up on *anything* after how hard we fought to…_

_\- To pursue something we selfishly thought was right. It wasn’t exactly wrong, but what Devola and Popola said at the end wasn’t exactly untrue. At least we got him back, Kainé. And it’s not exactly bad getting to know him all over again. In my memory, when I truly saw him directly for the first time… I did think he was cool. I probably felt the same thing you sometimes felt when looking at him. I was glad when he accepted me and proud, happy when he told me he was going to be there for me, and when we got you back. But we both pushed these sorts of feelings aside , didn’t we? Because his mind just wasn’t there to see them, otherwise you’d remember something about it now. He was just going to do his absolute best to get Yonah back, wasn’t he?_

_\- Yes. Yes, I think… that’s what’s been driving him the entire time._

_\- Then we were never rivals for this. Maybe being rejected pushed us closer together, even. But you denied yourself then and suffered everything alone in silence, always, Kainé. I’d be unhappy if you refused to be at least a little bit selfish now when it came to something joyful like this. Especially if you feel it may be a powerful enough connection to even consider… The way old humans made more of themselves._

 

It was rare to see Kainé blush, but she certainly did blush just then.

_\- W..we don’t even know if it’s possible, and I haven’t settled or anything yet._

_\- But you’d rather fight a hopeless battle to make it possible with him than ‘settle’ for trying to do something like that with person who experienced the very same change in their body that you did. This, if nothing else, just tells me how special you feel Nier was to you. Me… I’m just going to try to get to know the new Nier while trying to remember the old one little by little._

 

Kainé sighed.

_\- I… sometimes wonder if we should still try to learn or remember what happened there. What made us, the whole world, really, lose so much of him. When I look at him, when I see that he’s absolutely the same, that he recognizes me, that he worries about his sister and wants to do his best to help her, that day by day he feels more and more bound to us by friendship… I forget he’s five years behind compared to the one we lost. I just feel like he’s the best I could hope for in a world like this._

_\- I think after all what happened, we’re allowed to feel confused, even doubtful._

_\- But even after all that, I still don’t hesitate to strike down one of… them. Even after I regained him thanks to the very same thing I was despising, the very same separation of humans into Gestalts and Replicants, even after part of this system showed me an act of good will even though it was possibly the only thing in the world that could’ve brought him back, I still…_

_\- Kainé. Maybe we should all just try to be as happy as this world can possibly make us. You don’t need to hesitate now, just as you said in the past. Hesitating now won’t save or bring anyone back. There’s one thing we should consider doubly so now._

 

Kainé blinked twice. She thought she understood.

_\- We only have this one life, unless that thing that remade Nier can do the same to others as well._

_\- Yes. But if Gestalts, Shades, are the true humans, then even after they go crazy… if they’re the only ones left with a ‘soul’, then whether they’re sane or crazy… What happens to them after they die? I think they definitely have a better chance for something to look forward to than we do, isn’t that right?_

_\- Fuck, Emil. You’re too mature for being the little brother in the family._

 

 

 

The water was warm, pleasant, and it finally helped him wash off the struggles of working and most of all, of last night.

Nier was slowly coming to a certain realization. While he was definitely protective of his little sister, and felt rather awkward at the idea of her being with someone else, he knew it should be all right if it was a person he knew and thought of fondly.

 

Most Replicants seemed to naturally lean towards heterosexuality and a world of only two genders, so he somewhat understood what kinds of discrimination Kainé faced, and what for – she barely ever spoke of it, but the opinions of people in her village and the fact she needed to live outside of Aerie spoke loud enough.

Ironically, Kainé being a hermaphrodite made her being with Yonah appear more natural. Not that he could’ve been opposed to two people of the same sex being together, even if he personally found it just mildly unnerving – but he’d be a hypocrite for not allowing it for the sake of their happiness. Doubly so now.

 

Which is why the realization was becoming all the more painful and obvious now after him and Kainé were intimate. From the start, he wasn’t worried about Yonah getting stolen by the swordswoman.

It was the perspective of his sister somehow putting his feelings on him as a substitute if she couldn’t have “Lady Kainé”, or actually taking the swordswoman for herself, that made him worried and uncomfortable.

It was a really odd feeling, the realization that only now he’s been noticing the sort of possibilities, emotional connections, that weird kind of magnetic pull that brought people together – and that for some reason, seeing the changes in Kainé after apparently being apart for years made that odd pull towards her even stronger.

 

He rubbed his body underwater a little bit. His groin felt particularly sore after trying to go so wildly at it yesterday.

[“Actually, my jaw and neck hurt, too.”]

He ran a hand up his arm. Wiry, strained, stiff. Despite his appearance, his body’s gotten strong from all the physical jobs and fighting shades and animals that he did on an almost daily basis. It only made him all the more frustrated about his body now being otherwise underdeveloped. Yonah should’ve still been at least one or two years physically younger than him, and a girl to boot, but she’s grown taller than he was at the age of sixteen.  Even if he was strong enough to lift certain weapons, actually fighting with them effectively was problematic because of their size, length, or balance of weight.

 

He rubbed under his armpits and slid his hands back his taut stomach to that sore groin.

It was odd.

Despite being taller, stronger, and a better fighter than him, Kainé managed to encourage him to keep growing stronger without actually making him feel bad about the difference, and she expressed sentiments and desires that definitely should’ve made him feel well enough about it.

It’s not like everyone he ever met was particularly tall in this part of the world. He just felt like it’d be better for a fighter to have more muscles to work out, and a better reach.

 

This wasn’t his only worry, however.

 

He still had a feeling Kainé and Emil were hiding something from him, but it couldn’t have been anything bad, or done out of malice. He met Yonah and she seemed to be in the precise and exact same state as they told him she’d be. Free of Black Scrawl, but older and with little in terms of memory. Around seven or eight years older physically than he remembered, but it was Yonah. Both the girl and Kainé herself identified her as such, and he could just… feel she was.

 

Which meant whatever Kainé and Emil might’ve not been telling him, or might’ve lied to him about was likely done, at least in their belief, for his own good. He wasn’t going to press the issue until he was actually sure something was wrong, and then only if he felt like he was really being manipulated or their lies were piling up to a ridiculous degree.

 

He knew well enough what it was like to lie for someone else’s sake, even to them. He wasn’t going to condemn Emil or Kainé for trying to do the same for him, if his hunch was indeed correct.

After all, mostly everything they told him up until now was the truth, so maybe he was just looking for something that wasn’t even there.

 

Finishing with cleaning his body, he slowly rose from the warm bath.

Soon, they’d be trying to find ways to cure Black Scrawl or prevent it at their own leisure, but more importantly… perhaps they’d be able to find a way to help Yonah recover her memory.

 

 

 

 

 

Just a little later on, the water for Kainé’s bath was getting ready. Nier and Sebastian were going about preparing a meal for the three house residents that still required traditional bodily sustenance to eat. Kainé wanted to help out, but she got scolded about having ‘unclean hands’ right now, which was probably true… but made her feel a tad annoyed, anyways.

 

So she just sat at the side with Emil and watched, before Nier spoke out.

_\- These facilities we’ll be checking… They’re further away than I’ve ever been to, aren’t they?_

_\- Only if you discount the Lost Shrine. But… yeah. The passageways towards them are a little sketchy, and the direction and distance combined mean there was no chance you’ve ever even seen those places from afar. Let’s hope these places aren’t more complicated to get to than Junk Heap and Lost Shrine._

 

Emil pondered something quietly.

_\- There’s a chance we’ll see some animals of kinds we’ve never seen before._

_\- Actually there’s a chance we’ll see Shades of the sorts we never want to see again, which is what *I’m* worried about. When we travel to such new and uncertain places we need to make sure none of us are too far away from one another. If we meet a giant Shade with high enough regenerative ability, Emil may be our only chance at taking it down, but if it focuses on him, it’s gonna be a problem._

_\- There are shades like that?_

_\- Frankly, every time you think you’ve seen the worst they can do, some other Shade pops up that does what you think was their worst better than the previous ones. I think maybe us killing this many is serving as some sort of a filter that leaves the stronger ones behind to grow even more powerful._

_\- Or maybe those that are still aware were actively trying to take you down during that time. – Nier responded._

_\- That’s… more than possible._

_\- I think that you two should see into getting some *proper* armor either before or right after we’re done visiting the first spot marked. This is not a joke. Both me and the medicaments available in the area can together heal quite grievous injuries,  but the less we all sustain of those, the better._

_\- What about you, Emil?_ – Nier asked.

_\- My head’s very hard to destroy and as long as it survives, with sufficient materials I’ll be able to reconstruct a body and reattach myself to it. Which is why we didn’t sell most of the stuff we’ve managed to gather and transport over our trips. But it’s practically impossible to channel any magic without my body and it takes a while for the new body to readjust, too._

_\- So, basically… don’t get hit with anything that could potentially be devastating. And that goes for all three of us, most likely. Well, anyway, seems like my bath’s ready, so I’ll leave you three to your own stuff._

 

With this, Kainé indeed got up and left to take the bath. Immediately once she was out of hearing distance, Emil floated over to Nier, one of the skeletal magic-weapon’s four elbows lightly pushing into the boy’s back.

_\- After the entire happening in the past days, it’s really surprising you two just don’t take a bath together to save up time and water._

 

Nier blushed, but decided denying his involvement would’ve been disrespectful to everyone involved.

_\- Kainé thought it’d be distracting, and… I’m sorry for doing such things in your house, Emil. We still don’t even know where … I mean, I’m still a little confused about it all. I felt encouraged by what happened but it was confusing.  But… how do you know about such things?_

Emil shrugged, all four arms lightly moving up as he did.

_\- I have only learned of how people do such things relatively recently, to be honest. But I think Kainé already mentioned that I used to be a human, too._

_\- She might have. It’s just a little surprising because you have this mixed feeling about you. Somehow both young and mature at once._

_\- I guess in some way it’d describe me well, but… Just so you know. Me and you are already friends, and I know we both care about Kainé a great deal. So if doing this sort of thing makes you both happy, you shouldn’t really worry about it being my home or anything…_

_\- You telling me that won’t make it any more embarrassing or confusing, you know…_

_\- I see. I see. Well, maybe it’s good that you’re a little bit hesitant._

_\- It doesn’t feel right to not be decisive when it concerns Kainé, though, so I’ll try to do my best to either clear up the confusion soon or take you up on that offer, however._

_\- Haha! I guess you really are rather brave for your age, aren’t you?_

 

 

 

While Emil and Nier exchanged little jabs appropriate for boys, Kainé herself took her time getting into the bath and washing off the fruits of her own effort in terms of working, training…

And having sex.

[“With Nier, no less.”]

 

Indeed. She has recovered Nier, recovered a lot of her memories, and now…

[“And now, I’ve given in to this goddamn desire for intimacy without trying to resist. And since he seemed fine with it, I guess I’m going to stick to the plan where I do pursue him for seriously this time and stop denying myself. The only point of doing that would be…”]

 

She rubbed her left arm. The one that no longer had a Shade residing there.

[“Would be if I understood just what the hell happened and that somehow discouraged me. If this supposed gift of ‘maybe being able to reproduce like people of old did’ is really just a curse or a plan by the high-ranking Sh… no. I don’t think even that would hold me back.”]

She grit her teeth.

[“And the Shades are people themselves. ‘Gestalts’. They sentient ones will probably try to do what they have to survive, so… Why do I feel like we’re justified in battling them even though it’s just a conflict of interest? No… It’s not that I feel I’m ‘justified’. I simply still hate them all after all that for some reason. I can’t understand why. There’s only one thing that’d really hold me back from trying to do *something* right about living my life happily this time… And it’s him.”]

 

 

Indeed. If anything gave Kainé pause, and could stop her from trying to develop any sort of relation with the current Nier, it was the will of Nier himself or the ‘previous’ one.

She slid her hand over her breasts, noticing her nipples stiffened when she thought about either version of the young man. Her groin was too satisfied from yesterday to react immediately as well. Humoring herself, she spilled some warm water on one of the nipples before lightly rubbing it between her fingers.

[“What’d happen if that Nier survived somehow? If he stayed by my side and I didn’t have to suffer through those last three years, would I have the sheer desperation and need required to finally go after him? What if he did survive but is hiding? There’s plenty of stories where someone who kills a monster has to take their place, but that’s just not possible here, right? The Shadowlord was merely a Gestalt, maybe more important and stronger than others, but it couldn’t make anyone but another Gestalt into the ‘new’ Shadowlord, if such a thing is even possible. Still, it’d be incredibly awkward to find the older Nier alive now. Almost as awkward as knowing I just might be one of possibly only two people in the world theoretically able to create a human. A genuine human. What sort of crazy fucking ability is this? Why me?”]

 

With that, came another problem.

[“Not to mention her own brother believes the other person with that ability potentially has the hots for me. It’d feel incredibly awkward. She’s still young, not to mention… I now see the only reason I thought of her as ‘pretty’ might’ve been cause she ended up resembling Nier himself so much. Any attraction I might’ve felt towards her is just leftovers from her brother… is that true for her as well? Is she the type to engage in some form of hero worship, and I only got the leftovers from all the gratefulness and admiration she felt towards her big brother who was torn away from her life and memory? You can’t build anything on such things. Much less try to create a family, I think. That’d be sick and fucked up.”]

 

She poured more water onto herself after carefully scrubbing, finishing to clean up her body.

[“Who would’ve thought  one could consider such deep things when trying to clean up filth from their body. Well, anyway. That settles it. I don’t want to go along with Yonah simply because we could ‘fix’ something in this world. I *don’t* want Yonah. I’ve wanted her brother all along, and if she can’t get that, well, I’ll just stay away from her. If she tries to take him from me, well… She’s going to see she’s still way too much of a brat to challenge me in that field, thank you very much.”]

Steeling her resolve about continuing on the path she entered, even if she was just a tad more doubtful about slaughtering Shades left and right again, Kainé started dressing up, ready to leave the bath.

 

 

 

Despite only three out of the four house residents requiring actual meals anymore, all of them were present at the table. The choice was quite broad as well, with meat, fish, vegetables, and a couple mushrooms, still warm and with just a touch of spices to improve the taste.

Replicants, after all, had nowhere near the same level of access to various spices as the humans of old had. Sebastian and Emil might’ve been the last non-gestalts on Earth aware of what monosodium glutamate was, but Sebastian shied away from using the by now rare, almost ‘magic’ spice whenever he could – partially because of his master’s insistence it was unhealthy, partially not to debilitate his cooking skills for when he was deprived of it.

 

Kainé was particularly delighted in the state of the table, mowing down food and stuffing her cheeks full of it without consideration as to what was healthy and what wasn’t. Emil would probably smile at that if he could, while Nier just tried to get a portion of everything that mixed well and should’ve helped him grow healthily.

 

Sebastian decided to facilitate some discussion on topics unrelated to what was happening under the roof.

\- So, I take it with all the information decoded and with the knowledge of where the things you might seek are, you will be getting quite busy with your travels soon?

 

Nier nodded.

_\- Kainé and Emil do seem to have a general idea which things they want done first…_

_\- Once we confirm the dangers outside of the areas we have already explored by checking that first facility we’ve marked for investigating, I’d like us to continue the way we did up until now for a short while to get the money, and buy some armor before we check the second and third facilities. After that, we should check the ruins of Aerie and…_

_\- Ruins?_

_\- My hometown was destroyed, Nier. It sort of feels like a necessary sacrifice now. But, certain things might’ve survived and I want to find out if they did. We should also check Façade to see how they are doing, and to find out if we can still find a way of communicating with people there. Not to mention there are some things I want to check there, too._

_\- So, the bare minimum seems to be those five places over… how big a time period?_

 

Kainé shrugged.

_\- Including our jobs, I presume we should have at least half of it done in a month and a half. So I predict two to four months for checking out all the facilities and doing everything we wanted in regards to both those towns. The specifics may vary depending on costs and what we find on our journeys in terms of stuff worth selling, however._

Emil nodded.

_\- Kainé wants to take things slow and easy so we can repair our funds and train ourselves, prepare ourselves for danger, but there’s a reason why those town visits can’t be pushed too far back in time, so we may need to hurry them up somewhat._

_\- There’s something Kainé hopes to find in these towns?_

 

The swordswoman nodded.

_\- Other than weapons and possibly different armor than the one that may be accessible here, there’s a certain item that should be in one of those two spots. But… it was already a while, so people who might’ve been interested in it either have other worries or already took it. So there’s no point in rushing visits to these places now._

_\- I see. Well, I feel like we should’ve made armor our priority, but if Kainé finds it more prudent to first check what kind of dangers are more common outside of the lands we experienced so far, I guess we can leave it to her to decide._

_\-  Kainé is rather difficult for regular Shades to take down anymore, so as long as we’re careful about other threats and special cases of Shades, we should do fine…  That being said, we should be careful._

_\- Most of all, young master, it’s important to be willing to fall back and return to fight another day, better prepared. Being ready to retreat when circumstances aren’t in your favor is true caution, not cowardice._

_\- Nobody’s fighting to the death when we have nothing to lose_. – Kainé remarked. _– Not on my watch, anyway. If a Shade, robot, defense mechanism, or animal  we’re going to fight seems to be dealing too much damage or potentially be able to do it, we’re not taking it head-on, rest assured._

 

 

 

 

It was a long trip, and there were still plenty of wild animals and relapsed Shades to attack them along the way. It didn’t feel like they were traveling far enough off of their usual pathways to merit encountering something new and different.

 

Leaving the spear behind this time, Kainé decided to try out the odd weapon with double axe-like blades and a long handle this time, the one they found in the underground of Emil’s house. Unlike the weapons sold by shopkeepers, who usually gave a name to something when they sold it or recognized the work or reconstruction made by another blacksmith, there was obviously no way she could’ve known what the name of that particular weapon was, or if it even had one. She was pretty sure they might’ve recovered it from the underground of Emil’s mansion at some point in the past, as Emil seemed to suggest he went there to gain his new body, but that meant little in the face of the fact for all intents and purposes Nier never appeared anywhere in Emil’s memory, and she only could fully recall a couple of events after the by-now relatively stable memories she had of Nier until the point when he entered the Forest of Dreams.

 

 

 

So, whether she wanted to or not, Kainé had to leave the twin axes-in-one weapon nameless for now, and attempt to use it against the – relatively – harmless Shades and wild animals they encountered on their way, interchangeably with her dual swords to get in practice with both.

The axe’s weight still wasn’t really that large, but the length of the handle demanded a specific way of fighting depending on the strength and height of the person wielding it. It was likely Nier himself would be able to use the axe as long as he had a decent grip, which in case of someone short like him would likely remove most of the weapon’s reach.

For Kainé, that just means she wasn’t able to use the full capacity of the weapon as she was – and as the weapon itself was. It wasn’t exactly bad, just… not perfect. Not up to her standards by now.

 

Nier himself was still sticking to the first weapon they found, upgraded by Emil into a state where they didn’t find much rivaling it in power yet. It would take some time to upgrade Beastbain if they were able to do it at all, with Gideon growing more crazy with every passing day.

 

And Emil, unlike back in the day, had four hands, a ton of by-now relatively understood magic, and a spear to go with the by-far much better grip he could get compared to the times when he could only wield short weapons, like a mace. Spear of the Usurper, as it was called by the blacksmith, seemed to hold reasonably enough speed, attack, and magic power to play into Emil’s abilities well.

 

 

 

Finally, after some traveling, they’ve reached a spot they have definitely never even seen during their travels before. Thanks to the map, they knew well enough how they needed to proceed. The vast, green fields that encompassed most of the territory nearby Nier’s old village gave way to some more rocky terrain, including mountains that cut off most of the pathways leading to what lay behind them.

Slowly, the trio started climbing the path, ready to pass one of the natural borders of what constituted the area where they adventured when they’ve been together.

_\- Have any of you ever been out there? In that general direction, away from where we traveled when we sought out the Sealed Verses?_

Kainé was the first to answer.

_\- I don’t know about Emil, but personally I do feel like I’ve been there. Even this path looks vaguely familiar. Maybe I’ve taken one of those mountainside paths to return here soon before we managed to free you, Nier. I have been over to the areas indicated on those maps, just not much. There was no point to it._

Emil seemed to agree.

_\- The world’s surprisingly empty outside of the several areas we’ve seen, at least as far as meeting people is concerned. I did do some traveling at a certain point myself, although a lot of it was entirely out of my control._

_\- But there are some people out there, yeah?_

_\- Well, you already knew the world is mostly desolated, but there are certainly some villages scattered almost everywhere you go. You just need to be lucky to find them if you don’t know their location in the first place._

_\- So you both already explored some parts of the world I never managed to get to. Well, I’m glad we’re together this time_. – Nier remarked with a little smile, before Kainé suddenly stopped the group.

 

A little off to the left was an opening to a cave. Said opening appeared to be the reason why Kainé was reluctant to continue with their march onwards. Emil and Nier turned towards her questioningly, which caused her to put her hand up to her lips, then lean closer to them, whispering.

_\- Around and beyond these mountains, there occasionally lives a kind of predator… or maybe it fucking eats whatever, I don’t know… It’s bigger than a wolf, with a similar jaw, and lots of muscle. They usually reside in caverns or under the cover of trees like this. Tough bastards, pack a mean smack and bite. It’s worth being careful in areas where they may be around, and be ready to defend yourself. They’re somewhat quick when they charge on all fours, but they can stand up, so make the first strike count and be precise._

 

 

The two young men nodded to Kainé’s instructions, moving further forward more sneakily. As they continued moving forward, it begun to be evident that there was, in fact, an animal inside of there. Rough, coarse, deep breathing of a body far larger than human through a snout thicker and more overgrown than even a desert wolf’s  

Kainé was quick about checking the inside of the cave out, noticing the dangerous beast, then withdrawing before it could detect them, although it was obvious eventually the wind would give the creature their scent. Even their silent whispers or stealthy steps might’ve roused the beast’s senses eventually.

 

Kainé only really wanted to make sure of one thing, however. Whether the animal was alone. If yes, then it was better to kill it on the spot and not have their backs potentially attacked. If not… Well, she would avoid getting into a group fight, if there were several adults, and she’d feel a little bad about attacking if it was a mother with a cub. It was also rather likely that would prove an obstacle a lot more difficult to overcome if they tried to engage a mother with her young!

 

Everyone in the group knew how to properly proceed from there. Kainé had the double axe ready for a heavy hit right off the bat, and Emil was clutching his weapon tightly just in case it was needed. Nier’s hand rested on the handle of his sword, ready to draw it for combat.

 

Kainé was the first one to move, immediately shifting to the front of the group and using her ridiculously powerful leg to accelerate herself as quick as she could go. This was, actually, a mistake because of the weapon she picked. Not being accustomed to the ‘twin axe’ as much as she was with her two swords, attacks delivered at full speed of charging were doomed to miss the mark a little. With a target this large, damage would still be caused, and it’d be severe, but she wouldn’t be able to finish the battle with just one strike.

 

Predictably, entering its cave caused the animal to become agitated, and it stood up from its four legs to stand just on hind ones after stepping closer to Kainé, which threw her aim off just barely and caused it to be more difficult to attack the head or the neck. Slamming the axes’ blade into its torso shook the beast’s body, but before she had time to drive the blades deeper or repeat the strike, it was attempting to hit her back, trying to take out a good chunk of flash with a powerful hand-swipe.

 

 

Nier and Emil were following with their attacks, trying to not admire the beast’s powerful body before it was struck down.

 

Over a thousand years before, bears did exist in the lands Nier, Emil, and Kainé would explore in the future. They were large and powerful omnivores that represented a big danger to humans when fought against at close range.

Similarly, however, to other animals, such as sheeps or boars, the tasks and tensions of surviving in a world inhabited by things that could drive humans to the brink of extinction caused bears to become a little less like their kin back in the day. Patches of its skin on the abdomen and shoulders appeared to be almost like cured leather, and rather than relatively even claws, each of the beasts’ hands sported one larger, more mobile talon that seemed similar in shape, form, and function to that of certain even more ancient reptiles that fed on fish.

 

Except rather than just use it on fish, this ‘bear’ also was quite keen on stabbing Kainé, Nier, or Emil with it, and so, Kainé slid back, dodging the strike and cursing herself for not using her best weapon from the get go.

 

Nier followed on Kaine’s strike before the bear’s arm managed to get back to a more manageable position, gravely wounding the arm that it swung at the swordswoman, and Emil followed up with several smaller missiles formed by magic, before closing in as well.

 

Kainé blocked the bear’s strike with the blades of her weapon, holding it in a block which gave Nier enough time to strike at its body again with a quick slash from his left to his right. Using the momentum to spin his handle on the sword a bit when it was to the far right, stopping a little short of Kainé’s body, Nier quickly attacked with a somewhat weak stab that was quick enough to still deal some damage. This prompted the large bear to focus its attention on him instead, which was a mistake as Kainé immediately swung her two-handed weapon and buried it in its flesh, dropping the handle upon jumping back to draw out her dual blades.

 

The bear staggered backwards from more attacks, but it still attempted to lunge at Nier with its mass, prompting the young fighter to sidestep and block one of the claws with his blade, pushing the bear’s attack to the side while losing some balance from the attack himself as the creature fell on all fours again.

 

Emil was quick with the follow-up. Firing two quick rays at the beast followed by a third was just a prelude to keep it hurting and not moving, as three of his hands grabbed his weapon and stabbed it right through the creature’s head, finishing it off.

 

Nier rubbed his hurting arm after the final defensive maneuver he tried, wondering on how difficult it’d be to deal with this sort of strength all on his own. He still thought the giant boars might’ve been a little more difficult to deal with, but it was definitely a magnificent if scary creature to encounter.

 

Having said so to the other two, the group cleaned off their weapons after gathering a little bit of the bear’s meat and one of its claws to take with them.

After all, one never knew what could prove useful in time.

 

 

 

The rest of their trip was proving relatively uneventful. Nier could notice how Kainé appeared a bit disappointed over her inability to finish the fight herself quickly even without her favorite weapon, but also seemed happy that everyone got out without a scratch and that Emil was able to use his weapon well enough in conjunction with his magic.

The fields of what was beyond the areas that they usually explored didn’t differ much from what Nier has seen around the village, at least on this side of the known world. There was plenty of grass and the temperature didn’t seem high enough to drive him crazy, which meant the travelling was pleasant, and at first the open areas proved difficult for Shades to live in, causing them to not appear in any greater number once they passed the mountain path.

 

It seemed even the Shades themselves almost forgot there was more to the world than areas around his village.

 

Until they finally reached the spot on the map they intended to. The building cast a shadow over a large enough area to make them realize there was going to be a number of shades there, both inside and out.

 

The building didn’t look all that suspicious, in all honesty. A stone construct with an already completely rusted over and broken apart metallic fence along with a less complete stone enclosure that seemed to be in a little better shape, if covered with moss and definitely not as tough as it was in the past. The windows of the old facility were mostly gone, as with many buildings left behind by civilizations past that were unattended to, but overall, it was clear the place was in a decent state, and because of all the additional coverage, it was evidently a decent area for Shades to live in, and they took some care of it, too, which made the group hope that a lot of the materials inside, no matter their form, would be well-preserved – at least, it made Kainé and Emil hope that, aware as they were of the shades’ true nature.

 

 

Indeed, the courtyard had enough shades for a good dose of sport to be had. This time, Kainé wanted to make sure they’ve had the full advantage, and dropped the axe she carried around with her on the ground. She’d pick it up later – right now it was about unlimited mobility. She charged down the slightly higher ground they’ve had, but leaving Emil enough room to proceed with his own attacks.

_\- Sensei’s Regretarrage!_

_\- Emil, stop fucking giving your attacks silly bullshit names!_

 

Regardless of Emil’s naming talent the powerful waves of energy shooting out one after another caused quite the havoc in the ranks of shades standing between them and the facility, leading to several already dissipating and quite a few receiving damage.

 

Nier knew he couldn’t keep up with his companions when it came to battling these creatures. Not when they were serious, not yet at least. And nothing said serious like Kainé dropping her bonus weapon and shouting at Emil with profanities rather than explaining the silliness of his naming methods teasing. Jumping up, Nier brought the entire weight of his weapon down on a Shade focused at Kainé, ripping its thin armor apart and quickly following up with a series of swings that seemed to cut its form up enough to cause it to collapse. He turned towards the other Shades, focusing to try and bring out the natural magic of his weapon and bring out its aura of elemental fire for another strike at the shades that took an interest in him. Weakened as they were by Emil’s rapid fire, two of them were brought down with a single swing, and Nier dodged the strike of another with quick footwork, taking steps back and to the side before striking with a long lunging thrust forward, preparing it by pulling his weapon back at a small angle and taking another couple of quick steps towards the enemy.

 

This meant that, right now, Nier was right behind Emil, with three and four kills each, with Kainé having taken down two in this arrangement… But she honestly wasn’t even started.

 

There was a larger group of Shades in the background, some of them preparing to start releasing the usual magic attacks at the group. Emil prepared another barrage of energy blasts while Kainé just tossed a quick glance back at Nier, and how he was doing with the shades already surrounding him. Seeing him get his fourth kill, she nodded appreciatively, and then did that thing only Kainé could really do because of her agility, strength, and not being weighted down by anything other than her blades.

 

She leapt through the air, right to the back of the larger shade group, and seemed to chuckle with enjoyment at the feeling and sound of her first blade descending upon a Shade and hacking it apart in a single swing.

Fights were decidedly more enjoyable if one didn’t waste time to bring morality into them. It was one side or the other, and Kainé would always choose the side that ended with the safety of her own friends, just as the past Nier would.

 

The wild spinning, slashing, and chopping she delved into, a dance of death that, when confronted with the more vulnerable shades trying to attack them with magic from the back, could easily outpace even Emil’s honest effort in killing them one after the other, left her quickly moving from three kills to thirteen while Emil’s second wave of attacks placed him at nine and Nier struck down numbers five and six.

 

The young warrior took a better grip of his sword, preparing to battle the group of shades left to him, knowing this was hardly the final score. The shades Kainé was taking care of before her sudden lunge of doom were splitting themselves between him, Emil, and aiding their friends at the back, leaving the group vulnerable to being struck down anytime.

 

It was time to start trying not falling behind in the headcount when things got serious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And, finally, the new adventure of Nier and his companions properly begins! This story marks the start of the chief aspect of the fic's storyline, which mimics the game a bit in the sense that it's based on visiting certain important locations, some known, some new, but eventually several spins and twists will be put on that.
> 
>  
> 
> Regrettably, my uploading pace will remain significantly slower for at least the entire month.  
> For all intents and purposes all of my stories will be on hiatus from this upload to 20th-25th of February.


	13. 3d - Dreams of Flesh, Dreams of Spirit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Both the group that took down the Shadowlord and those left in their wake are preparing their own moves in pursuit of their own desires.  
> But these groups are not neccessarily uniform in those amongst themselves. The world at large suffered and changed a lot, but it's a huge place where many events can happen, many paths are available to those with the right means.  
> Kainé, Nier, and Emil all have their own views on what's the most important part of their broad quest, but they agree on both the means and the general goals.
> 
> Can the same be said about their former and future enemies?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You might’ve noticed that in the beginning of the previous chapter (3c), another difference between Gestalt and Replicant versions of the game shows. In Gestalt version, after she gets de-petrified, Kainé remarks that Nier “looks like shit”.  
> Replicant version lightly intensifies the ‘ship tease’ of Kainé and Nier, with Kainé saying “Became handsome, huh? How… how long has it been?” instead, and Nier’s general attitude when giving her a Lunar Tear being a little softer.  
> The current chapter (3d) mixes information that are canon (i.e. 13 grimoires being created in total) with made-up trivia and information for the purposes of worldbuilding and expanding the story.
> 
> I tried to make sure that the additional information revealed in this chapter fit both my view of how the potential future in the sequel came to be and didn't go against the themes and information available from the game and bonus materials - and where it didn, it wouldn't do it to the extent of making anything that happened in the game meaningless. These concepts will also be further explored in the future, obviously.

They were used to killing only somewhat smaller numbers of Shades, but it didn’t really matter. The facility was well-maintained and, while Kainé and Emil were fully aware of the implications that came with the removal of this number of Gestalts, Nier was still convinced he was killing beings that were once people, but not anymore, and managed to convince himself that there was no particular difference in slaying this group – if they were sane, they shouldn’t manage to spread Black Scrawl to anyone since they were in such a far-off location. If they were already insane, it didn’t matter if they lived or died.

He just had to get stronger, and had to keep up with others.

Kainé was already too hardened to slow down even knowing the entire truth, but evidently Emil grew weary and worried about the carnage past a certain number. In the end, once the facility was cleared sufficiently that they deemed it a safe place to move around, Nier and Emil were roughly even in their kill count. Kainé was quite aware that their deeds, just like before, in Shadowlord’s castle, were only making what was inevitable quicker. If they attacked, she’d kill them. The places they researched would be crucial in becoming safer, in recovering Emil and Yonah’s memories of Nier, perhaps in enabling her to, if they desired, start their own family with Nier.

In the sort of world they ultimately found themselves in, those were the only things that ultimately mattered. More often than not, the people whose ‘gestalts’ she removed would be the same ones who’d tell her to stay out of their towns, and mistreated her and Emil no matter how much they helped.

All she did was maybe bring on the inevitable illness that much faster on their heads, and remove the possibility the sick system that drove them to what they’ve done in the first place would create another wave of them assuming the system was even working anywhere else, and assuming their respective ‘gestalts’ wouldn’t already go insane before the end of their current lifespans.

 

It was the matter of bringing the inevitable fate of another quicker against finding something that could make the fate of those close to her that much better. Kainé lost the ability to show enough altruism to make this a difficult choice, and still haven’t regained it.

Deep inside, she probably thought it didn’t matter in the big picture. If they already screwed everyone over, screwing individuals over just a little bit more couldn’t really affect them…

And they didn’t have souls anyway, so it’s not like anyone had anything to look forward to in the afterlife. For that reason, she was glad Nier managed to continue fighting just as efficiently as before even after learning a small part of the truth.

 

The inside of the facility was, and felt, old. It was like they appeared in a place that housed the mysteries of ages. It *felt* like a library filled with books, but its appearance was more akin to what was underneath Emil’s mansion than anything else. Odd instruments, contraptions, ‘computers’ similar to the ones they activated with Turchesi and her robot, and many other tools people didn’t really use these days filled most of the rooms inside. Interspersed with these chambers of old sciences were what seemed to be test rooms for something less scientific and a little closer to the group’s sensibilities. By now, Emil could identify it pretty quickly.

\- It’s mostly a spot for gathering information, but… they did test some manner of magic here. Probably for weapons, or maybe something related to how the shades were made.

 _\- Then we’re definitely at the right place. Question is, how much of the information that could aid us is still present here, and in a way we can access it_.  – was Kainé’s response to Emil’s opinion.

_\- Probably too much for us to translate on the spot with the emergency device… Shall we just use it on the titles of whatever we can find? We can only take so much with us._

_\- That seems like a good way to deal with it. Let’s go. Don’t spread out too far, some sort of defense systems or sneaky shades could still be around._

_\- Sure. Let’s stick close together._

 

The place’s machinery obviously couldn’t be activated. The amount of traditional books was high, and they were taken care of, but scanning their titles proved most of them were scientific or recreational titles, so they decided to focus on the documents that were ‘printed’ or similarly produced to the ones they’ve gotten from their temporary alliance with Turchesi.

 

The place didn’t seem to have any more significant defense systems active. The shades were certainly still around, but the surviving ones appeared to give them a wide berth now, making the whole research trip a rather simple one once they’ve entered the facility proper.

 

They gathered a whole bunch of things based primarily on their titles, which on occasion surprised Nier.

 _\- Why do you seem to be gathering the titles with that word in them?_ – He eventually asked, unable to hold back his curiosity over the fact Nier and Emil appeared to instinctively know it’d mark something important.

_\- What word?_

_\- G… Gistart._

Kainé and Emil cast a glance at each other. The minimum, revealed on a need-to-know basis, was best to be revealed, and they both had enough awareness of that.

 _\- It’s spelled **Gestalt.**_ _To put it simply, this is the word Shades use for a person who underwent the process that made them as they are. Basically, any treaty on Shades is a potential treaty on magic as we don’t really know it overall._ \- Emil instructed his friend.

- _Of course, a whole bunch of it will be useless to us, maybe except for Emil here, but we should still at least look into it. The question is, how are we going to do it?_ – Kainé asked.

 _\- Let’s sit down for a moment here and try to translate at least a couple passages from everything to see if it could be useful. Two of us will work on that, one person will stand guard. We’ll switch after a while until everything we’ve found is accounted for._ – Was Emil’s suggestion.

 

The titles of documents and books they’ve gathered were certainly unusual.

“Maso : The utilization of magic particles.”. “The Other Worlds.” “Gestalts and mortality.”, “Emendations of Project G in early and latter phases. Special Gestalts.” “Fake Life through Technology and Maso.” “The Tome of Books, Grimoires, and other Vessels.”

 

They just lacked the appropriate metaphor, the appropriate comparison to what they looked like and seemed like when faced with even only skimming over this amount of text.

A person that remembered the days of ‘old humanity’ would certainly compare the group to a bunch of students preparing for a last night of cramming.

 

 

 

Five days later…

It appeared their efforts somewhat paid off.

The facility they visited held, surprisingly, a lot of information. Most of it, they could’ve utilized better in the past.

Emil realized an important truth about magic in the world they were in : truly, magic was unnatural in their world. Apparently, for them, magic could only happen through utilization of magic particles to manifest energy that poured into the world through potential and existing connection to other dimensions. It didn’t matter much by now for his own utilization of magic, but at the very least it spoke volumes about how drastic the change from the original shape of their world was compared to what was happening now.

Emil didn’t speak much about this revelation, but it made him mightily curious. Were those other worlds separated from theirs by distance alone, or did the researchers of magic particles mean something else? When they stared at the sky, was there some other beings living there, far away from them? Or did one need to use magic itself, and the world they knew was just reflected like a mirror until one managed to break through? Maybe it was both?

Perhaps, one day, he’d know more. He already knew the world was much bigger than the area they knew about, and the books implied it was indeed too vast for him to even comprehend. Yet, it appeared magic was a force that encompassed even more.

 

The second subject to be explored was that of the Gestalts themselves. Apparently, there were several societies of Gestalts spread over the world, and to accommodate for this, some special Shades were chosen or directly modified, even created.

The original stable Gestalt, which Kainé and Emil understood was what they’ve known as the “Shadowlord”, was able to produce refined magical particles in his body that served as the stabilizing factor, keeping Gestalts sane and in control. But, because the world was large, even after what was referred to as some undefined catastrophe, a number of societies would appear in the world. These Shade societies needed access to the refined particles as well to stay sane and alive, and to remedy their need for this research in creating new stable Gestalts similar to the Shadowlord apparently took a long while before these groups resigned themselves to letting the Shadowlord be primary source. As a stabilizing factor to far-away societies, ‘courts’ of special Shades would be created, with several special ranks they’ve had trouble translating at first. At the head, a ‘royal’ shade, or a ‘monarch’, would be, and this shade did possess two special characteristics : Ability to connect to Shadowlord’s refined Maso through a special trance in order to disperse it in their society, and the ability to actually create such particles through entering some sort of risky procedure, with the risk including death or relapse if over-reliance on this method was present. Apparently, no matter how hard they tried and regardless of the risk associated with it, the ‘monarch’ of any particular court was always much, much less effective in producing the stable particles compared to the original stable Gestalt.

 

This meant, depending on how many of these royals were alive, the gestalts would be able to hold on for longer than they originally believed. Kainé imagined problems would arise when it came to dispersion of these few stabilizing particles such ‘monarchs’ could produce on their own… A riot of underprivileged Shades was a thought that brought a grim smile to her face.

It also meant that there likely would be a small number of shades that would eternally remain stable, as long as they were able to protect their own interests. And, evidently, it also meant they didn’t see everything in terms of what the most powerful Shades had to offer, save for the Shadowlord himself evidently being the supreme incarnation of the Shade’s power on virtually all levels.

 

The Shades were not alone, however. Back in time, humans constructed ‘fake’ humanoids, androids, such as Devola and Popola, through a combination of science and magic to aid the societies of Gestalts in preserving and watching over their ‘bodies’. Emil and Kainé took some pain to avoid Nier learning of this yet, but evidently, Devola and Popola were not unique entities. There were apparently going to be several classes of androids, of different numbers, dispersed over the world and each class was going to have a special caretaker. The group presumed eventually they might run into a set of androids similar to Devola and Popola.

 

The last information gained was too deep for them to decipher thoroughly yet, other than the fact that apparently special entities were made to aid the Gestalts in a manner different to how regular Shades were made. Kainé knew what she met in the Forest of Myth was one such being, but the primary information was quite a shock.

There were thirteen Grimoires. Ten books other than the  ones they’ve destroyed, and nine other than Turchesi, existed still, and they apparently had some special function and use as far as the shades’ purposes were concerned.

Most interestingly of all, the place implied the locations of specific Grimoires were listed in different such facilities. Obviously, those could change in time, since the books themselves had some ability to move around as long as they were awakened and freed from their confines, and Turchesi’s appearance suggested most of them could be moving as such now… But, at the very least, there was a chance to find one of these tomes in their listed resting spot. They’d have to decipher the specific information held in the facility they’ve gotten to, still, but it was already unlikely to be useful, since it held the locations of books specifically referred to as ‘White”, “Red”, and “Turquoise”, and yet, hints to some of the other locations that would’ve held the knowledge could be present in there.

 

Nier decided that, because of the Grimoires’ magical ability and possibly held knowledge, they’d attempt to find one given the chance, so it was added somewhere to their long list of priorities. Sebastian was left to decipher the info regarding the potential localizations of places that could’ve told them more about the Grimoires.

 

Nier, Kainé, and Emil were preparing for something else. Working the small jobs that appeared, training, and gathering supplies for their trip to the second location of choice – one that Kainé insisted they visit no matter what, since it was closer than most of the others and was related to something that interested her personally.

But there was one more thing they needed money for, a different kind of supplies. The locals at Seafront claimed a visit by traveling merchants was going to arrive tomorrow, and amongst many trinkets, said annual visits often carried something that was of interest to Nier and Kainé in particular now : Armor.

 

 

 

Far away from Seafront…

Compared to the days of old, communication between those of their own type has become simpler. Devices for magnification of sound were no longer necessary even in almost full numbers, and affirmation of presence was also carried out quickly and efficiently.

Those were the benefits of being creatures consisting almost solely of information, spirit, will, and otherworldly particles.

As always, the members of the – admittedly dwindling – two Courts in the land once named for plants and heavenly bodies had the most influence on the proceedings, vocalizing the ideas they came up with during the meetings of the ‘elite’ earlier on, and having points to disperse for the proposed options whenever they were multiple exclusive ones instead of being able to cast only one vote.

 

No matter how removed they became from the banalities and hard, rational approaches of old and whether they were real or fake, humans evidently couldn’t avoid emerging into specific social classes.

 

Soon enough, he wasn’t going to have these sorts of problems anymore. As soon as he reached a level even mildly resembling that of the entities which battled to determine their fate, he’d be able to tear away from this useless society that refused to accept the truth even after hundreds of years of both activity and hibernation.

All he needed to do was vote for the outcomes that’d be potentially beneficial.

_\- … and so, we live every day without knowing how long it’ll take the madness that lurks just beyond our gaze to invade us. As such, brothers and sisters, we have to focus our efforts on specific options. The primary options proposed are efforts to fully reconnect with the other Courts and attempt to convince them the pooling of resources together is the wisest course of action, focusing all efforts on creation of a new Original One by ourselves, and focusing on finding the remaining Grimoires. Make no mistake, citizens. The creation of thirteen Grimoires was not just by accident. Even if those that were originally meant to carry out our ultimate joining with our Vessels are long gone, the remaining Grimoires still present a valid failsafe option. Gathering ten Grimoires for the ritual virtually guarantees us success, and we shall soon have enough in our grasp to attempt the ritual, albeit at a much lower chance of success. I believe this is our most likely chance to succeed in survival, since the search of Grimoires removed mildly from our lands also present the opportunity to find and negotiate with another Court on chance. To maximize our ability to find Grimoires, a solution has been proposed. A solution using our entities of memory to craft those who would be the most efficient at finding the Grimoires._

_\- But didn’t the Forest in which the entities reside been damaged beyond recognition? Can we still safely utilize such a procedure?_ – a strong voice of a respected, but not ‘noble’, citizen resonated with the others.

_\- It is true. One of the dangerous Entities emerging from amongst our Vessels, possibly one of those responsible for the destruction of the Original One, has assaulted the Forest while the Entities attempted to execute the failsafe and initiate the production of the Affinity Vessels. Its productive capabilities have been reduced. It is no longer possible for it to produce the Affinity Vessels quickly enough for it to be useful for our purposes, which is why focusing on their production has not been proposed as an option, but they did manage to distract the attacker and preserve themselves in the form that still allows for this purpose, even if at a low rate.  As such, producing these vessels for the purpose of finding the Grimoires is a valid outcome._

_\- Even so…_ \- the relative of the same citizen spoke. _– We all know fairly well that the memory entities have been put to much more strain than us. Now that they have been so thoroughly physically damaged as well, is it truly wise to suggest forcing them to struggle to produce vessels that aren’t even ‘replicants’ ?_

_\- The memory entities have been created for this specific purpose. They will follow our directives._

 

This was true enough. The memory entities *have* been created for a multitude of purposes. Their ability to form replicants purely through stored data, replicants that’d have perfectly homologous memories and personalities to the stored data, ones with extreme affinity to the Gestalts, was one of those.

The issue, of course, was that the Courts either did not possess or did not share the full set of information about what truly was happening in the Forest of Myth in the past years.

Not that he cared. He wanted this. He wanted all of the others to lose hope and follow him, eventually, so even if what was once the Forest of Myth and the ‘entities of memory’ were completely broken, he only needed to be able to utilize that option and find a single Grimoire to start making up for the difference to others.

 

Soon after, the voting commenced.

 

 

 

 

In Seafront a day after, at the merchant’s ship.

 

The world was indeed a larger place than the areas they’ve seen during their travels, and the very rare occasional visit to Seafront that brought goods that couldn’t be found on the land they lived in.

While certainly some towns in their section of the world would offer forms of armor, Seafront had limited uses for it, primarily focusing on various protective gears made of materials that wouldn’t suffer any adverse effects this close to the sea; those weren’t really sold often and primarily utilized by those in service to the city.

The merchant Kafoorai brought different products to the town’s shores, and although they couldn’t afford to but all of them, they certainly could check out his armors, several of which were in their price range. It was an odd experience for Kainé to be putting on such restrictive, more thoroughly-covering, protective gear, to the point that, for a moment, she considered wearing only part of it to show off her legs and panties…

But it quickly became evident that’d be defeating the purpose of purchasing armor in the first place.

She chose based half on the comfort and attractiveness factors, anyway. Nier and Emil scolded her for still thinking like she had both extreme endurance and regeneration ability, but, for all she knew, the group’s problem didn’t last in their ability to take hits or match the regular Shades, but potentially in their ability to endure attacks from, and delivering the finishing strikes to, the greatest of shades now that Nier and Weiss wouldn’t be able to do it.

So, an armor should have the mobility to dodge.

Kainé’s chosen set consisted of gloves combined with beautiful, ornate bracers that ended just soon enough to allow her flawless mobility at the elbow. Her thighs were protected by light ring mail stylized to be as black as the treated skins that came together with it, serving as the cloth and as the protector for her calves. Thicker down at the lower part of the leg, it finished as tough but smooth, thinner fabric that was supposed to go under the ring mail thigh protectors. Her abdomen would be protected by metallic plates sewn into leather armor, while her breasts were not overly confined with only the treated leather armor part serving to cover it; it actually accentuated her figure even without showing off her breasts. Brown and black in design, It was presumably meant for a shield-bearing warrior woman in the past, precisely because of the lesser protection on the chest, but with an additional, metallic shoulderguard at the left arm, likely placed there to aid with defending against blows that were meant to disable the arm using the shield. With Kainé’s overall body strength, its presence didn’t really matter much in terms of weight, and for some reason she felt like this armor was meant specifically for her.

To the point she actually bought both of the suits Kafoorai had.

Twenty six thousand gold down the drain.

 

Nier’s armor was more thorough in its protection, consisting of a light brown brigandine-like design stylized for a look that an unknowing observer from the world before the concept of gestalts and replicants ever appeared would simply recognize as ‘eastern’. With both metal and bones of the world’s more dangerous animals used to toughen up the fabric, it was outfitted with heavier palm and foot protectors to complete the functional image. Because Nier’s body was still somewhat small at the time, they’ve had some trouble picking out the right size, but since not many people  would pick said same size, the trader lowered the price from 11 800, letting them pay one thousand four hundred gold less for the suit.

This was just within Nier’s price range after he worked hard to get money over the past couple of days, so he insisted on buying it all from his own money even though it’d leave him with only a little over a thousand. Kainé just humored him. It’s not like she ever intended to seriously pay a lot of attention to which part of their overall pool of funds belonged to whom, and she did just blow a lot of her own money to buy two suits of armor simply because she liked them – and because she intended to use them for a while.

 

And the first place they’d be testing out their protective gear at was facility in which she was hoping to gain the means to take advantage of what the armor was supposed to do – keeping a body healthy.

 

Whatever happened back at the Shadowlord’s castle, she lost Weiss, Nier, and for a while even any memories of the latter. She thought she lost Emil, too…

But both her and Yonah appeared to gain something, a bodily trait that likely meant some humans could be born the ‘old’ way.  

And all she needed to do to check if it was true was either abandon herself and become some sort of breeding stud, taking advantage of Nier’s own sister, or try to return a single bodily function to a body of a replicant – or whatever the current Nier qualified as.

She sure as hell was going to do her damned best to do just that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhh, the bread and butter of any role playing or action-RPG/hack&slash gamer ever. Equipment. Armor and weapons. 
> 
> While all I’d really need to do to introduce new tools for hurting others was take a look at what a certain person was carrying when they arrived in Tokyo on a certain day, armor wasn’t really explored much in neither Nier nor its parent Drakengard series.
> 
> As such, it’s somehow fitting that the first time Nier and Kainé purchase armor is way, way after the game has actually ended, not counting DLC materials of course.
> 
> Both of them, and potentially Emil, will be getting more equipment that wasn’t in the original game, particularly in terms of armor, but I decided to make the first armor they’ve obtained a nod to the World of Recycled Vessel (15 Nightmares) DLC.
> 
> If you want some visual input on how their clothes look like, it’s best to mesh together both of Kainé’s alternative outfits, then cover the parts that are considered stripperific with brown and black leather armor.  
> In Nier’s case, his Kabuki outfit, as well as several Eastern brigandine variants - the indian "coat of ten thousand nails", the chinese dingjia, and the japanese kikko armors served as the visual inspiration.  
> While, arguably, Nier’s outfits in the game had protective value in both Father and Brother Nier’s cases, Kainé’s clothes had none other than distraction. I imagined that, being how she had to become very strong during the time she traveled with Nier and Emil and later when she survived over three years on her own, Kainé would still be confident enough to choose armor for its visual appeal over functionality even when she no longer avoided the fact that she should’ve worn armor for a long time now.
> 
> It’s still progress. If Kainé’s mild exhibitionism was a sign of her battling her body image issues, her first truly intimate experience with Nier definitely pushed her in a new direction – one that outwardly states her body is, in fact, nobody’s business.
> 
> I presume everyone already noticed the way I 'count' chapters, and many guessed why it is so. This is the final part of "chapter" 3. This fic is planned at this point to have 10 in total, of varying length. Hopefully we're in for a good ride.


	14. 4a - White Sheets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The science of the old humans may or may not prove to be what Kainé is looking for, and there's another facility nearby, meaning a lot could be obtained from their trip. But are Nier, Kainé and Emil the only ones moving? And how long will Nier accept his friends' evasiveness on some topics?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a little hard to write these days, and hence the delayed updates, far more than I believed would be the case. On the plus side, I should be able to enjoy a free summer and as such may have enough time to finish the fic before the sequel comes out. I don't plan on starting anything new and serious before I'm done with Nieringen and Freak Love, but sometimes a desire to write something else arises - heck, I've had some long-term ideas for turning this fic into a part of Drakengard-verse series, or doing certain crossovers...
> 
> Nevertheless, here it is. Chapter 4a. Hopefully you'll enjoy it and catch what was meant to be caught in it!

In  the area once known as the Forest of Myth…

The less of the forest remained, the more lonely his existence felt, and the more pointless.

Perhaps that’s why he came up with an initiative that was so against the interest of those who expected to have control over him, particularly when the forest’s remains continued being damaged by the invading woman. By ‘Kainé’. To ensure his survival in some form, and to resolve the woman’s own problems, he gave her what only he could’ve given her in the entire world.

The more he thought, the less he believed it was just about surviving. Breaking through the entire mechanism the original humans took fourteen or so hundreds of years to prepare despite only being some ‘replicants’, and so easily trashing all of his defenses at a crucial moment, was really something that amazed him to the point he wanted to do something for her.

And now, he’d be forced to work in a way that might’ve rendered those attempts meaningless. It was only natural. The original humans had to fight for their own purposes and their own survival just as the Replicants fought for theirs.

He was too old to think of himself as one of them anymore, and too intertwined with the web of the world’s memories, one that was deteriorating. The only other identity of this long a history was gone just because of that, his only true ‘companion’, even if they barely ever interacted in truth.

The time would come when he’d attempt to make this web into something different. The infinite pool of memories could’ve only held so much without cracking and starting to spill, and some manner of fixing it was necessary. Be it an attempt to analyze the memories and trace them back into the past or develop them into semi-fictional scenarios, there’d come a time where the memory entity remaining would also start losing himself and require a way out. A a way to change himself if he were to remain in this world at all.

Judging from the foolishness the ‘gestalts’ suggested, this attempt to change the purpose of his power and the power of those memories might’ve been now. He just wasn’t entirely sure how to do it yet, but perhaps an answer couldn’t come from this thoroughly ruined world alone.

_\- Which is why the remaining members of the Courts will be directing you and us in regards to which Affinity Vessels should be produced next, and those are the first ones._

 

Such ridiculousness of the situation. A group of ‘shades’, ‘Gestalts’ as they called themselves, talking to a giant techno-organic flower, or rather, what remained inside. And, rather than do something useful to one of the few abilities he had left, impaired as they were, this was their choice of action.

_\- You realize not only gathering enough data to do this will take time, these particular vessels have absolutely no use when it comes to…_

_\- You would be wrong. It isn’t our decision, anyway. We will strive to improve the plan of executing a failsafe to…_

_\- You ran out of failsafes. I was just another one, meant to allow for the Replicant system to restart and continue, even that carried a risk of failure, and no matter how many Gestalts and machines have been concentrated in this place it didn’t stop the invader._

_\- But you’ve been spared, and must now work for the purposes of the Courts and the rest of our brethren._

_\- Yes. That is true. I can try to do what I am told here, but it is a ridiculous misuse of even a lowered ability to produce these special Vessels. This isn’t a failsafe if it’s already doomed to fail itself, you know. How long has it been? How can you even be sure you can even gather enough Grimoires for this so-called last-chance ritual to have an even meager chance of success? Do you realize how far you may need to look?_

_\- We’re just following orders, and so should you._

_\- Very well. But restoration of my productive ability and gathering of data about what you want produced is just going to lead to more time being wasted._

_\- Such is the will of both the Courts and the citizens. I trust you will abide by it._

 

There was nothing left to be said. All he could do if he didn’t want to follow that order was waste *more* time gathering data than necessary, and that certainly wasn’t helping anyone, either.

 

 

 

 

Far away from the Forest of Myth…

It was a wondrous place, left behind by the original humanity. The walls must’ve once been white and pristine, and the high number of beds suggested there were quite a few people admitted there for some problem or another in the past, or that the workers sometimes spent the night.

The specifics, Kainé could not know. It was a moderately large place and, regrettably, the group had to either go in blindly or spend some time over the least deteriorated plan of the building in order to decipher where they wanted to go.

Nier understood this was once a place of research, healing, or both, but it seemed kind of like a prison would in certain ways. Not a particularly pleasant comparison. He was primarily made uncomfortable and annoyed by how much Kainé seemed to dodge the issue of what they were looking for here. Obviously, the place *could* contain a ton of information assuming it didn’t entirely deteriorate in the time since any kind of people lived there, but would it even be of any use to them in the current time? It was evident the old humanity had some methods and technologies that no longer worked, simply based on the amount of effort Grimoire Turchesi had to take in order to provide them with information they’ve already had.

As a result of Kainé’s utter stubbornness, however, the group spend several hours searching through the place. Compared to the previously visited facility this one didn’t seem to have much in the way of shades attempting to maintain it, with some sections truly damaged from lack of use and many potentially useful documents eaten away by the passage of time. Some of it, however, appeared to have been preserved precisely because it was a facility of this sort; either some thoughtful Gestalt was taking care of it, or whatever caused decomposition of paper documents – neither Nier, nor Kainé, nor even Emil likely knew much about the process – was stalled by the low amount of microbes or bad conditions for their growth. This prompted Kainé to extract these documents in turn, and attempt to decipher some of them on the spot.

 _\- Why is there so much on wome… Never mind…_ \- Kainé started, trying to avoid spilling everything on what  she’s been researching right away.

_\- What are you trying to find in there anyway, Kainé? Is the medicine of old humanity going to be able to restore Yonah’s health and memory anyway?_

_\- Perhaps, perhaps not. But I also have a per project on the side, something I feel is really important, Nier. Surely you didn’t think we’d only be chasing ways to help up Yonah again? There are other things that can be important._

_\- But…_

_\- As long as she’s safe, it’s okay, right?_

_\- I suppose._ – Nier remarked. – _A lot of items in here are similar to that odd shop in Façade, aren’t they?_

_\- Indeed. I suppose they might’ve gotten them from a place just like this. It makes me wonder whether they ever learned anything about how the old technologies functioned._

Emil decided to cut in.

\- _Maybe some of the more dedicated or crazed people in there did, but it’s not a very safe bet._

_-I’m worried I may need to stay here for a while to get everything that we need. There’s even a risk we’d have to sleep here once…_

_\- It’s far away from any lands with people, Kainé. The risk of animals and Shades sneaking in is high._ – Emil decided to remind her.

\- _Is it really a problem if we just take everything that is here? –_ Nier decided to ask. – _This isn’t an easily defensible position and we’ve already spent quite some time just getting here…_

Kainé seemed mildly irritated.

- _There shouldn’t be anymore Shades in the area, otherwise we’d run into them by now. And there’s way, way too much information in here that’s virtually useless to us. Checking it back at Emil’s mansion would’ve not been anything but a waste of time, and some of the info could describe an area of this place, a substance or mechanism or procedure that could be found in here…_

_\- Kainé… Even if this place held such things, they would’ve likely already lost their usefulness. It’s been too long a time._

_\- The place’s too large to limit ourselves to just one source and we can’t just be tossing everything that seems okay this time. Like I said before, too much of the information in here is about the side of the issue that no longer interests me._

Emil seemed to understand.

[“So the humans of old have treated any problems in this regard in women far more than men, indeed… Is it hopeless if the problem’s on the man’s side? Will Kainé settle for trying to make children the way old humans did with Yonah if that’s the case?”]

Just one look at Kainé’s expression and the way she kept frantically searching through the documents told him that, likely, would not be the case.

 

 

Hours later…

It appeared they’d indeed be using that place for their rest as well.

The split of the building was curious. It was apparent it held up surprisingly well, given that many remnants of the old civilizations fell into complete disrepair, but only specific parts of this facility were thoroughly touched by time.

It was likely there *was* a Gestalt or a small group of them with an interest about what was in that facility, until fairly recently, but they likely relapsed and turned into violent Shades, as such likely getting killed by the group earlier or leaving the place to attack and hunt humans – or rather, ‘replicants’ – in some further-off places.

 Kainé settled on one of the beds with a heavy sigh as Nier checked out the perimeter of that particular room to ensure there were no hidden entrances.

 _-Did you learn anything of use today, Kainé?_ – Emil asked, worried about his friend’s apparent state of utter tiredness. He was also worried how Nier would be taking her defensiveness in regards to explanations as to what her pet project in regards to this place was.

\- _It’s… a huge mess. Honestly. Most of the information gathered here deals with female infertility which is frankly not a problem that we have, judging from me and Yonah. And I do mean the vast majority. I did find stuff that would interest us, but it’s all really difficult mambo-jambo that I can’t even begin to hope to understand, and apparently there’s a small bunch of procedures that can be performed depending on the source of the problem._

_\- The issue being we don’t know what the ‘problem’ in replicants is when compared to humans._

_\- Exactly. How do I know if he has cocogenital andrenal hip-sup-something leading to a problem with his... 21-hyrdongylaze  'enzyme' or if replicants are constantly under the effect of some  substance that supresses fertility or if it's a 'hormonal imbalance' or if  it's something with his vario-mario-or-coxelles or something entirely different. It’s impossible to tell which of these treatments could actually help without having an understanding of it, and frankly it appears all or almost all of that knowledge would’ve been lost. I presume with enough research we could still attempt to blindly apply those procedures to Nier, but it’ll take quite some time studying those… Other than that, there were some information on where to find ‘bonus data’ on this, including something about a certain device. Now, frankly, we know the devices created by old humanity wouldn’t be able to function anymore and some would simply be inoperable from the passage of time, but interestingly there’s apparently some ‘solar powered’ ones here._

_\- Even if we were able to use devices that contained information, however, it’s a big question on whether or not we’d be able to operate them or understand the information they contained._

_\- True enough, but I intend to try anything and everything I can._

Nier returned as she spoke that last line.

\- _You sure seem determined about this… and frankly it’s annoying that you speak more about it to Emil than me. Explain to me as well!_

_\- Noooottt nooowwww, Nier! I’m already  far too fucking sleepy to go over the same crazy bullshit twice. Let’s just go to sleep and try to finish what we started in the morning._

It was a convenient excuse, but an excuse nonetheless. Emil simply said he was going to be the one on the watch and told Kainé and Nier to just rest until they were properly functioning again – particularly Kainé, who seemed mentally drained from reading something even vaguely explaining the science of the original humans, and with that, they were all silent. Kainé wondered if a time would come when she’d be able to easily and shamelessly share a bed with Nier without having to trick, lie, convince, or manipulate him in any manner.

Ever since he revived, it felt like the lies have been piling up, while the answers and their ultimate goals are seemed to be very far off.

So much was left to do before the world turned completely crazy, or just emptied. She hoped they’d have time for some normal life before all of that happened.

 

 

Several hours later…

The blissful rest was just what his friends needed, most likely, when they undertook yet another difficult quest. Kainé’s determination was refreshing to see after years spent without meeting her, but Nier’s willingness to trust them made Emil feel like they were treating him no better than Popola and Devola did during their first journey…

Still, it was hard to disbelieve Kainé’s motives in all of this. Emil saw both the raising joy and the increasing guilt in her ever since they managed to recover Nier, and he himself could just barely remember a scene or two from their adventures together, mostly the first time he actually, truly saw his friend.

Perhaps he couldn’t enjoy the memories they’ve had of each other like Kainé and Nier could, but even that single memory was undeniable proof that their time spent together was real, and the struggles they went through together, for better or for worse, affected the world.

Regrettably the way they affected the world made the people who once created this facility, or their descendants, or just whatever the local Shades counted as, either entirely feral people-slaying monsters or dedicated enemies of any groups of Replicants that appeared. Maybe they were determined to attack precisely because Kainé and Emil gained some degree of fame with shades, maybe they only wanted to get rid of the attackers because they invaded what the Shades considered to be their home.

Just as Emil was waking Nier and Kainé up to defend against an attack of a smaller group of regular Shades, in different parts of the facility, the smaller Shades were attempting to bring their attack to the attention of those that in terms of pure power would be considered their superiors.

 

 

 

Nier and Kainé were on their feet momentarily. The small group of Shades that attacked their resting room was dispatched easily enough, but worked fine to get their blood flowing. Several hours of sleep were enough to function in a fight, evidently, even if it’d take Kainé a while to get the focus and patience at a level high enough to resume studying any of the documents on the spot.

_\- Seems like the place may have some regular visitors after all… Or are they only here because we’ve been causing trouble for the shades around the area? Doesn’t matter. Let’s keep together. We have two places to visit._

_\- Will you give up on studying these documents on the spot?_ – Nier asked with exasperation.

_\- Depends on how many more Shades we’ll see as we go about. Let’s move out. There are two areas we need to check. First things first… we’re on the wrong floor. Below us should be two places where humans that worked in this facility stored some of their items. There is something there that may be of interest to us. Let’s check that place first._

_\- If you already know your way around, we’ll follow your lead!_

 

 

 

 

 

The facility once had a set of devices to distill water with. The room holding these devices was long the lair of a being who preferred solitude, and the other Shades preferred to keep out if its way. A person who didn’t fit with the others in these lands when alive wouldn’t fit much better when removed out of their body.

But there were decades, centuries to spent in such utter loneliness. The little shades approaching that creature would never know if the reason for its behavior was simply the craze and paranoia from its long self-exile or if the lack of stable influx of magical particles from the Shadowlord caused it to go into a craze more characteristic of their state nowadays.

All that mattered was the sudden ignition of gold blade in its hand, reminiscent of a butcher’s knife, shredding through their shady ‘bodies’ at the height that would be identified as their neck. The creature’s other arm plunging forward in a long stab to damage and trample the third out of four smaller shades, prompting the undamaged one to turn around and run, its last surviving comrade left alone to fight against the opponent it never could hope to defeat.

 

 

There was what the humans would identify was a locker room next to a storage room at the floor below. Kainé didn’t care much for the locks and doors the old humans put in place, only for the contents. Repeatedly, her blades slowly slid, then ripped something out, leaving the contents intact. Finally, she found an example of what she was looking for. A slender form consisting of two metallic rectangles connected by a hinge, roughly the width of Nier’s torso each.

_\- This. That thing. We’re looking for those, but only take the ones that appear to have hued, reflective panels at the back, connected to them, or otherwise in the same package somewhat. Those can apparently utilize the sun to generate the electric energy old humanity’s technology ran on, so we’d be able to use them without Turchesi’s robot._

_\- It’s going to take us a while to search through this place…_

_\- Emil, guard the rear. Me and Nier will look in these rooms. Nier, watch out and make sure nothing gets a sneak attack at you._

_\- You as well._

The facility used to have employers. Many years back, humans used a lot of substances and stimulants for various purposes, some of them more accepted than others. But, for many of those, the humans were expected to give those who didn’t wish to partake in them a bit of space, and many facilities tried to create separated areas for workers that partook in those substances to safely use them during work breaks without annoying those who wished to stay clean.

The area of this sort, once permeated with the smell of smoke, was now the lair of another of the larger Shades the smaller ones tried to warn about a visitor. A large, roughly humanoid creature crawled over, slowly, towards the visitors. Its form reminiscent of what a human might’ve once looked like, but emaciated, exchanged for the form of a wispy Shade. Its legs were completely gone, substituted with a small mass of short and thick tendrils that slapped against the ground and weaved in the air at its movements. Its palms seemingly reduced to a thumb and a set of pincers, it moved by pulling itself along the ground with its thin, front limbs.

 

The smaller Shades were cautious, but rather than attack, the second powerful Gestalt communicated to them its wish. And, with the hands of its smaller brethren, it was slowly dragged along towards that which would allow him to engage and pursue the intruders.

 

 

 

Two of the odd devices requested by Kainé to be gathered appeared to have the ‘panels’ as the ones she described joined into the package, thus proving these particular ones could be charged or powered through solar energy. With that, she quickly tried remembering the final directions in the document she studied, towards the room that could hold the final set of documents that might prove useful.

She could hear them. She could hear the Shades’ moving, some of the armors of the ones that carried such things making clanging noises at the nearby floors. She wasted no time busting through a door and two of the Shades that wanted to ambush them behind it, then swirling in a dance of death amongst a small group of the creatures that gathered on the other end of a corridor. Running up the stairs, again, three floors this time, the group reached the second highest floor of the building and took several sharp turns, slaughtering three more Shades along the way, until Kainé busted through the door to what looked almost like someone’s personal office. She quickly scanned through what appeared to be marked sections of the documents in the room and decided.

_\- It’s here. It’s this room._

_\- Kainé… Can you hear that? There’s a sound._

_\- A metallic one. But it’s not the Shade’s armors. It’s like they’re trying to… Heck. It’s best if we don’t search through what’s here overmuch. If this place has any security machines, it’d be best if we just departed before the Shades can activate it._

 

They had a bag, and left the carts they used for transportation of most of their items just outside the entrance to not make too much noise. Quickly, Kainé grabbed what appeared to be the scientific documents, one after another, putting them into the bag and filling them to the brim, even pulling the devices they recovered out and placing them on the office’s desk.

_\- You’re worried they’ll get damaged if we engage something that fights like a robot or more of the magic-using Shades._

_\- Hell yeah I’m worried!_

_\- Kainé… you weren’t nearly so protective of the documents from that last place._

_\- Well, there were only Shades there. And not many of them. No robots. Here, they’ve snuck up on us. We don’t know how many they brought!_

_\- It’s still a little fishy…_

_\- DAMN IT, NIER, THERE’S NO TIME!_

After quickly gathering up everything they could, the issue was getting out of the building as fast as possible. Normally, it was the sort of height only Kainé would ever be seen traversing with a jump, and they’ve had the additional worry of their armor’s weight and the state of what they were transporting now as well.

Kainé just kicked the floor as if to check it.

_\- We can’t just jump off from here. Nier’s new armor would make that a mess. Let’s take it one floor at a time. Emil, use that Haluawhatever on the floor by the doors. Let’s make sure to not damage anything of importance to us._

_\- Even if I use a spell like that, the floor won’t…_

_\- Just do it._

_\- Are you sure?_

_\- Yup. Now blast the damned floor._

 

The boy-turned-magic-weapon did as asked, and Kainé herself wasted no time in charging up a strike with both of her heavy blades to completely pummel through the floor and onto the one below. Dust was spreading everywhere.

_\- Nier, hold onto the devices! We’ll make two more quick descends, and you wait until the dust settles somewhat!_

_\- Kainé, do we really need to…_

_\- Shut up and ‘Halboltua” or whatever!_

 

With what could’ve only been a sigh, Emil followed up in Kainé’s steps by floating over to the hole in the floor and descending onto the lower level. Another loud hammering sound could be heart as the swordswoman managed to break through yet one more level of the floor in order to descend.

The shades would likely follow the noise, but there was also plenty of shadow outside. It’d take some time before they were in a spot away enough from the facility for some of the pursuit to give up thanks to the sun outside…

That’s when he noticed some of the Shades appeared to be escaping. At the very least, they were retreating, and giving some area other than the ones they’ve actually been in a wide berth.

Nier made sure he could easily draw his sword, looked down, and started to jump from one floor to the other, following his friends. There was still a chance they’d be able to escape without coming in contact with whatever caused the smaller shade’s retreat, even if there was a small chance it was a friend.

_\- Now, Emil, try to lightly blow all of the glass in front of us outwards. There’s no point cutting ourselves on glass shards if it can be done better… Nier, you’re already here? You could’ve waited a couple more moments…_

_\- There’s a group of shades outside that seems to be panicking. They weren’t coming out of any of the places we have been in recently, so there might be something dangerous here._

_\- Maybe a boar or one of these other huge animals we’ve encountered._

 

Kainé shook her head.

_\- Maybe there’s an occasional clash between the sane and insane Shades, too. That might be it today. Let’s get out of here._

 

With a light flash of energy, Emil managed to produce a large enough hole in the glass for the group to get out through. Kainé was the first, easily making the jump even with the bag of documents, spinning around on her feet lightly and quickly in order to observe the Shades that were outside of the facility and find the cart they’ve brought to make transport easier. Nier handed the two devices to Emil so he could cradle them to his body while he slowly floated out, the young swordsman making a loud ‘thump’ sound as he jumped through, his armor’s weight definitely making such acrobatics  both noisy and a little harder than in the past.

It appeared. Even slouching lightly, it was a good deal over seven feet tall, though nevertheless less gigantic and impressive than Nier expected the creature to be. Definitely a Shade, its head was a malformed and almost featureless piece of black and grey, but at the back of it and his neck a mane of what appeared to be shadowy, tendril-like ‘hair’ extended, partially coming down to its neck to complete the image of a more animalistic than humanlike quality to the ‘hair’. From its ‘cheeks’ down towards where the clavicles and chest would be, something opened and closed, showing off light gleams of yellow, orange, and red that appeared to make up the being’s inside, the whole mechanism awkwardly similar in appearance to the gills of a fish. The being didn’t seem to forsake armor, but rather than metallic plates, several pieces of various ribcages were connected to it and covering its torso with a plethora of bones that seemed to provide appropriate protection, if not one that would be effective if something powerful struck early. The odd, warrior-like image was completed by the fact the Shade was dual-wielding weapons; oddly enough, they appeared to be daggers or short swords, the one in its left almost black and designed more for stabbing, the one in its left almost golden in coloration but appearing more like a butcher’s tool. Despite the creature’s long arms, its weapons would’ve impaired the Shade’s reach.

 _\- Can we get to the cart without having to deal with… this?_ – Emil inquired, as if annoyed that all of the jumping around turned out to be potentially meaningless because of the apparent danger in front of them.

\- _We don’t have to run._ – Kainé stated, a sudden change in attitude apparent. She appeared far less worried now that some of the shades scurried off to safety and the apparent biggest threat was right in front of her.

\- _I know we don’t *have* to, but you said…_

_\- That’s not what Kainé meant. This shade is large, but unless it possesses some sort of surprising magic power, it’s still at a huge disadvantage. Kainé carries that Beastcurse spear now, after all, so against a set of daggers…_

_\- My reach is going to trump his longer arms. Not to mention, even if Nier were to engage it, this Shade would need some serious effort to penetrate his new armor. I’ll start wearing him out, you guys carefully take what we’ve brought to the cart. Nier, make sure to take down all the small fry._

_\- You know I won’t leave you to fight him all on your own, even if it’s clear you have an advantage._

_\- I didn’t expect you to. Try to keep an eye on how he fights… I’ll make sure he’ll show all his cards before you two are back._

_\- I can take him on, Kainé._

_\- Enough talk. This is the perfect occasion to use that thing, and I’ll take his armor off at least if you’re intending to duel him. Emil, make sure to get the cart out of here so Nier can safely return to kick some weird dagger-wielding Shade ass, or cover me when I do it._

_\- You guys and your fighting spirit…_

Nier and Emil took the path sideways after getting the bag from Kainé, wanting to reach the cart while avoiding a clash with the attacking Shade. It appeared to turn towards them instead, ready to intercept. Kainé couldn’t tell if its relatively slow movement speed was something natural or if there was a bonus factor involved, but she decided not to give the Shade any time to start charging after she noticed it changing directions. Instead, she assaulted at full speed, running towards it while drawing the Beastcurse spear, jumping into the opponent with a flanking, dashing attack. The bones it covered  its body with were taugh, presumably not consisting only of ‘human’ – that is, replicant – skeletons, but also potentially some animal or another. Still, the strike of Kainé’s blow was enough to start cracking the bones, and the creature evidently needed several moments to turn and twist its body to face her, which she ruthlessly took advantage of by striking twice in roughly the same spot, to break through the armor, then charging up an electric strike using the weapon’s innate magic in a successful attempt to deal the first actually damaging strike.

With a groan and a series of weird, shade-speak words – Kainé felt almost blessed she couldn’t truly understand the wretched things anymore without Tyrann there to feed a translation straight into her mind.

It responded with the same sort of attack she used. The left hand of the Gestalt carried a dagger-like weapon that seemed to cling to and draw shadow into itself, while the butcher knife-like blade in its right ignited with flame. Kainé waited for the moment it attempted to strike before tumbling backwards, swinging the polearm to take advantage of its longer reach. The strike successfully countered the attack by hitting the Shade’s arms, and Kainé immediately took advantage of the fact the pain seemed to stagger the Gestalt as far as further attacks went. Straightening back up, she stabbed into one of its arms from above and simultaneously kicked herself up in the air, directing her leg at the creature’s head. The kick connected, almost sending the being flat onto its back, and she confirmed that the mane of shadowy tendrils didn’t appear to serve any offensive or defensive functions. At the very least, her opponent needed to focus to make them perform in any such manner.

Kainé’s acrobatics were, by now, honed to the point of ridiculousness. Before her opponent managed to gather himself up from her repeated strikes, she already landed right back on her feet, altered her body’s equilibrium, and took advantage of the apparent lower speed of the Gestalt to lunge forward with another spear strike, cracking more of its bony armor in yet another spot.

It successfully spun around, trying to strike with the butcher’s knife-type weapon, but the swing lacked power, and Kainé managed to fully block the attack with the single shoulder-guard of her new armor.

[“Who’d knew that’d come in handy… still, will take some time before I seriously know how to incorporate that into the defensive side of the battling. Heck, I’m still getting used to actually requiring the defensive side.”]

A quick kick to the being’s legs once more caused it to become off-balance. The large size combined with short-reach weapons might’ve not been so debilitating for the creature if it wasn’t battling someone as strong, fast, and skilled as Kainé was.

The constant puncturing of its bone armor meant it would soon be stripped off entirely.

 

 

Nier and Emil were not having much in the way of problems, either, which actually worried the former.

Some Shades were keeping their distance from the one battling Kainé – not very successfully, one might add, but they appeared a little more encouraged with the group spread and the largest Shade now focusing on Kainé. However, Nier had a feeling this wasn’t the only thing they were up to, that there should’ve been more of them in the field still. Slashing them apart, he proceeded to escort Emil towards the cart and allow the boy-turned-magic-weapon to take it a good distance away from the facility before going back to aid Kainé.

There was, of course, one more possibility, one more route through which the enemy could attack. The windows and perhaps another set of doors located at the lowest level of the facility were all spots through which Shades could’ve emerged and struck out against them. It was a possibility he had to take into account, in fact, one he’d bet on. He made sure to carefully scan the windows by which he passed. Most of the rooms seemed empty… some had something like an odd statue or two placed in them, not always standing normally, although said statues looked odd, somehow. He didn’t have time to study them, anyway. After running into the next group of shades, Nier ceased the observation of potential ways of attack and tried to get to Kainé as fast as he could.

 

She really couldn’t have expected the next move the by now agitated, wounded, and partially armorless Shade would end up pulling off. It initially looked like the creature was going to attempt a magically charged attack once more, but it ended up being something new entirely. Gripping tight the almost black dagger in its possession, the Shade appeared to draw onto the very tendrils attached to its head, then sacrifice them to the blade’s magical power somehow. Quite quickly, the odd strands dissipated while shadowy swirls of magical energy passed through the blade and lashed out into Kainé. For a moment, she was honestly worried; this was a kind of magic she hasn’t encountered from anyone else but the Grimoires themselves, and it seemed to assault her life force directly somehow, with the swordswoman momentarily panicking that the attack is honestly going to kill her. With a quick, furious lash-out, Kainé struck along the creature’s chest and neck in hopes of taking it down, but her lack of composure this time allowed her to be countered and struck by the short blades it used for battle. She made two steps and a half-jump backwards, checking her body. It didn’t appear that the effect was fatal, or even lasting; it was indeed some rare but apparently purely damage-oriented kind of magic that this Shade, for some reason, managed to learn to channel through its weapon.

_\- Kainé!_

 

The sound of Nier’s voice shook her out of her reverie and reminded her she wasn’t alone on this battlefield. It was quite spectacular to see the young warrior perform the same, descending, smashing strike with his sword that she saw him do quite a number of times in the past… but had trouble remembering at times. The smashing strike completely tore through the remnants of the shade’s armor, leaving the creature uncovered to strikes. Its attempts to turn and attack were less than effective as well; the butcher’s-cleaverlike blade stopped because of the angle at which it struck into Nier’s armor, the young warrior parried the next dagger strike and struck out once more, wounding the tall creature only for it to attempt unleashing the same attack that hit her. Nier ducked, dodging one of the spirals leaving the blade and being only struck by the other; it appeared the attack send out two of them in its standard variant, but it might’ve been able to form more of those.

\- _I’m fine, Nier! He can… channel some odd sort of magic through that dagger! It saps your life force directly but it doesn’t feel like he recovers using it, or that there’s another long-lasting effect… I hope! Just pay attention and… Fuck…_

The next strike of the tall being drew blood, and Nier prepared his own sword for the strike as if still furious at the creature for successfully wounding her. Both of them charged up fire-enhanced strikes, exchanging the blow with Nier staggering backwards after his blade clashed with the butcher’s knife.

\- _Shit shit SHIT!_

She wasn’t about to let the boy get seriously wounded simply because seeing her take some damage pissed him off enough to want to finish the creature himself, so she did another of her dashing strikes, piercing through the Shade with her spear. It was a trap, however, as the next magical attack was ready.

\- _Kainé!_

Nier pushed her away from the swirl’s range, and although staggering, she managed to dodge yet another one of them. The young warrior himself was struck by the one meant for him rather than the one he managed to push her away from – this time, their opponent released three of these attacks.

Its head was getting noticeably more bare, and Nier’s next horizontal slash connected. Kainé swung her body to the side and used the spear’s bladelike end to cut, rather than pierce, along the being’s back just in time to stagger it during its next strike, allowing Nier two successful parries and another quick attack to its body.

_\- The swirls again!_

 

The shade spun  around, apparently realizing Kainé was the bigger threat, perhaps because of her greater reach, but this time she was ready. Dodging the magic attack entirely, Kainé unleashed another strike before darting out of the path of another fiery strike. She could feel their opponent growing frustrated and attempting to bring in more attacks they would’ve not been used to, but it appeared to be hitting the limit of its abilities.

Quick, piercing strikes followed Nier’s next dodge from under the short blades, but they came from Kainé instead, the rapid assault belying her weapon’s weight and her – relative – inexperience with said weapon. She lured in the creature for yet another attack before dodging out of the way and creating an opening for Nier to take advantage of, another strike connecting to leave the beast staggered. It charged up the dark magics once more, but rather than the odd swirls, it struck out at Nier with the dagger enhanced with the energy. However, the young warrior noticed none of the odd growths from its head disappeared before the strike, and the damage might’ve been catching up to the Gestalt – if the things even properly felt exhaustion and pain – making dealing actually connecting attacks all the more difficult. The two replicant warriors struck in unison, each with a thrusting attack that gave Kainé a little more room to move away because of her spear’s reach, and leaving Nier secure with space to dodge because it came from the side that wielded the butcher’s knife rather than the dagger. As expected, the creature miscalculated in frustration and unleashed its magic attack, too late realizing both of the fighters were prepared to move out of the way.

It was almost out of juice. Kainé thought that, unless it had an additional source of power to charge up this attack with, it could only unleash one or two more of those magical attacks before it was limited to regular dagger strikes once more. Even the magic only brought a little variety to its movements and chaos to the fight, and with Nier’s intervention she was once again firmly in control…

 

Until a sudden noise brought both Kainé’s and Nier’s attention away from the Shade they were fighting, and towards the facility once more.

The rooms Nier managed to see through the lower windows appeared to be some sort of storages or otherwise meant for equipment, and yet they appeared to also hold something quite different than equipment. What Nier thought earlier could’ve been some sort of figures or sculptures might’ve indeed resembled that, but they were smashed into smithereens along with a good piece of the wall as yet another, armored Shade emerged from within the building, responsible for the damage caused to the wall.

She knew the type. They were rare, hulking, and could’ve potentially been even stronger than the beastie they’ve already got themselves busy with.  Large but stocky, with bladelike – almost sawlike, in fact - extensions attached to the armor of their arms, they were perfect for assaulting barriers or shredding through humans like they just did with those statues.

 

He, on the other hand, remembered these life-sized human statues well from his approach towards Kainé’s position. This time, he could study the pieces of its quite lifelike body flying around   from a little more up close and with better illumination. He understood that other than quite intense attention to detail,  there was an odd quality to what they looked like. They weren’t made of any type of stone at all; the substance was a little more brittle and a mix of white and almost transparent that made it clear it wasn’t regular stone.

[“It’s like… a weird kind of glass or salt, mayb… Oh crap.”]

 

The change in focus surely did not benefit Kainé nor Nier, and they both tried frantically rolling off to the side, yet still got struck with one of the spiral magic attacks each. Nier was even getting a little short on breath, but the odd mane of shadow-mass that formed at the back of the odd shade’s head was entirely gone, leaving behind a malformed head that seemed almost more like a mix of reptilian and mismatched human traits than any animal he knew about. The shadowy form suggested a mildly elongated jaw and ruined facial features, but that was about it; the shade’s color and occasional flashing of its magic-based body obscured whatever features the head once had.

And now, unless he had one more ace up his sleeve, he was out of his special magic.

Kainé decided they’d need to split up before the Shades were allowed to join one another and coordinate their attacks. Obviously, when battling a heavily-armored Shade like this one, and one much larger than her as well, attempting to take advantage of a spear’s reach over plain old striking power, speed, and her greater familiarity with her two swords was pointless. On the other hand, both Nier and the Shade they’ve been battling so far were visibly worn out from the battle, so sending him against the new enemy would’ve only made sense if she was confident she could finish off the other enemy within moments, and join up with Nier almost immediately.

Lastly, she couldn’t really predict how well he would do at avoiding the much larger Shade’s attacks while armored. The choice was obvious in her mind, and she immediately switched to her two blades-style before dashing towards the new opponent.

_\- Finish that guy off, Nier! I’ll take care of the big one!_

The young swordsman likely had his own doubts about the situation but decided that, whether Kainé was telling him to take care of the worn out one simply because of battle lust or because it was tactically sound for her to do so, the fact that she was better suited to dealing with the larger enemy at the moment remained.

Nier turned just in time to parry the next attack from the large Shade, noticing in the corner of his vision how Kainé immediately sliced up three of the four Shades accompanying the large monster before darting to the side to provoke – and avoid – one of its strikes. But that meant one of the Shades was now moving towards him, and he needed to take care of both his opponents at once under those circumstances.

It was a simple enough affair. The question was timing it right. With a bash of his armored hand, Nier managed to push one of the large Shade’s strikes to the side, and then use his own blade to stab the shoulder of the larger creature in order to impair his next attack. Two more quick slices with his blade later and Nier prepared the final strike of the combination move, charging up his sword’s fiery aura… only to spin around at the last moment, striking the Shade that was about to pounce him, and finishing him off with a chop from above after that hit dealt heavy damage. A quick parry save him from the larger Shade’s response, and Nier was certain now; the creature’s magical attacks run out of fuel and the damage him and Kainé did was finally catching up to it. It wouldn’t take long.

 

Kainé herself had her usual attitude towards taking down the remaining stronger Shade after striking the three smaller ones down.

Hit it faster than it can hit you. Then, keep hitting it hard, and don’t let it hit you.

The humans of old would likely marvel at the sheer pace of her legs’ movement, the height and distance she could jump, but first and foremost they’d ponder on how a relatively slender woman could strike with two heavy, mildly ‘magical’ swords so hard as to smash, cut, chop, and peel away metallic armor within just a couple of hits.

After jumping onto, then propelling herself off of the large Shade, the woman who once housed a similar creature in her own heart and body dodged its slam from above, maneuvering between its large arms in order to do a quick, upwards vertical slash with both of her blades that combined with the previous attack finally revealed the odd composition of a Shade’s body, mimicking a physical shape but consisting primarily of something that appeared more semi-liquid like and with a mixture of wispy and almost glitchy ‘covers’ of what might’ve been supposed to represent skin.

Now, it was just the question of dealing enough damage to it for the fight to not last too long.  It wasn’t that she was worried Nier would have any trouble – it’s more that she was worried the Shades wouldn’t stop coming until the real big fish made its appearance. It was always a safe assumption that even as they defeated more and more of them, a bigger threat could’ve still been hiding.

 

Nier ducked to the left after yet another strike from the dark, metallic dagger of his opponent and watched how the large Shade tried to summon up some more energy to unleash yet another spell or charged attack, only for the young warrior to slash it across the side and move towards the creature’s back. An angry strike with the butcher-knife was dodged with a backstep, with Nier doing an elegant cut from above right down on the Shade’s hands. The metallic clank of the weapon hitting the ground below proved that the regenerative abilities of the opposing Gestalt couldn’t really keep up with the damage anymore, and the strike was truly impairing to its ability to wield the weapon even though its body was, for all intents and purposes, a lot less ‘physical’ than Nier’s.

That was all the invitation the young fighter needed. A quick feint invited the Shade to try and strike desperately with a thrust of its dagger only for Nier to unleash another vertical slash, following it up with a quick combination of attacks. The Shade finally got in a strike – a punch with its now free arm – but it wasn’t enough to faze Nier sufficiently for its counter attack to connect. The young warrior ducked a little lower, using his elbow to strike the creature’s next thrust of the dagger-wielding arm mid-air and detour it, with Nier’s sword cutting up the taller opponent’s leg, then being withdrawn. The young swordsman proceeded to return the favor of being struck with a fist, punching his opponent instinctively where the solar plexus would roughly be on a person of this height. It likely wouldn’t have the effect it should in a normal brawl, but it did sufficiently push the taller Shade’s body away… just enough for Nier to thrust his blade right through the creature. What appeared to be blood spraying from a found coated his sword, and he managed to remember the first moment he felt like hurting and killing Shades was a very similar experience to hurting and killing humans. What he just fought might’ve once been a person, or an amalgamation of several people, but now, it couldn’t communicate with his own kind and didn’t even attempt to. As such, no quarter was given. Nier pulled the blade out and struck the Shade across the chest once more, just to be sure, turning to see how Kainé was doing just as the creature’s second dagger hit the floor as well, and its body started to dissipate just as it begun to fall towards the ground.

Nier only took a moment to retrieve the daggers before darting towards the spot Kainé was fighting in. Shortening up the battle was important, after all.

 

Kainé herself was doing really well at whittling down the vitality of her own opponent, but it did appear she forgot just how tough the larger Shades could occasionally be. The saw-like blades on one of the Shades’ arms managed to swing at an angle that made it almost impossible to dodge, so she tried to parry instead; even with her strength being hardly human, this time she was the one who found herself on the wrong end of being the much lighter fighter. She’d likely end up being sent airborne, and then flat on her ass had her back not hit a wall somewhere mid-way instead, causing the swordswoman to instead slowly slide down onto the ground with her back against it, staggered from the shock.

Her opponent was certainly going to try and take advantage of the pause, implying the large Shade still had most of its wits about it, but she wasn’t going to just lie and take one of these blows to her face. Three things happened almost at once – Kainé rolling away from where its arms would strike, and the creature’s hit not connecting with the ground as strong as she anticipated because of a small barrage of magical missiles striking it. Emil was evidently observing the fight from a distance and decided to unleash some attack of his own at the moment where her opponent had the greatest opportunity to take advantage… but that wasn’t the only aid she received.

 

Once more, Nier struck out against the opponent she was fighting with, and once more he connected with his blade’s horizontal slash in a way that would’ve both dealt damage and distracted the immense Shade further. He didn’t have to wait long for her to follow up on the advantageous position, her hits not coming quite as fast or strong as before however because of her body still recovering from the previous strike. With Nier continuing the barrage from the other side of the monster, however, it was proving enough. It trying to split its attacks and slam its hands into the ground and both of the warriors was a move that had way too much telegraphing in its preparation, and they dodged just at the right moment to unleash a deadly counter-attack, Nier’s blade piercing a little below and into the direction of its neck while Kainé’s slash practically chopped off its somewhat ethereal arm and gave it a huge cut along the back. It proved to be enough as the being tilted over, falling onto the ground and seemingly started to dissipate. Kainé confirmed Nier retrieved the apparently magically enhanced daggers his opponent had.

_\- Are you okay, Kainé? It looked like he got you for a moment._

_\- I… I’m fine. I’ll be fine. Just a little… ringing in my ears. Let’s…_

 

She quickly took several steps towards Emil’s location to confirm to both herself and Nier that she was indeed okay. Her pace and balance were good enough to suggest so, so she quickly took a glance across the facility once more to make sure no more Shades darted out of there to try and attack them before starting a jog towards Emil’s location, slowly picking up the pace.

_\- Let’s get out of here before we get into any more trouble._

Nier didn’t have to be told twice, even though it was still a little odd for him to see Kainé so eager to get *out* of a fight.  Nevertheless, there didn’t seem to be any more Shades appearing from within the building for the moment. After re-grouping with Emil a little further away from the facility, the group only continued to move at a fast pace for a while before slowing down when it appeared none of the Gestalts pursued them.

_\- We’re going to try and go for that second facility in the vicinity before returning. – Kainé declared. – We’ll only stop to heal up a bit and then we’ll try to get what’s hidden there… assuming the place doesn’t swarm with Shades or something else._

_\- And if it does?_

\- We’ll just have to withdraw for a while – Kainé responded with a shrug. _– It’s good to try and get everything we can in one go, but if we have trouble transporting it or if there’s a risk all that effort we went through making sure what we gained was left undamaged was for nothing._

Emil nodded.

_\- Well… it’s good to be pragmatic, I guess? Let’s make sure to not do anything needless like staying behind simply because it seems the enemy that originally seemed to be the ‘big problem’ suddenly appears less so, all right?_

Nier and Kainé just chuckled at the sudden strike of Emil-wrought sarcasm. This time, it seemed, they managed to get rid of the primarily sources of potential trouble before they became *really* troublesome.

 

 

 

The little Shades took a couple of steps back as they managed to settle the larger creature down. Even without actual legs, it appeared to tower over several of them, and as such the realization about what was constructed below the facility, either through the large Shade’s own initiative or by an accident he learned of, might’ve surprised them.

The tendrils that grew a short length in the place of the creature’s legs slowly wrapped themselves around the contraption , the metallic noise of it detaching from the mechanisms that held it in place and the quiet but unmistakable noise of swirling, metallic wheels filling the chamber that felt full with that thing and all of the Shades in it.

The large, odd, wheelchair-like contraption and the weapon the large Shade employed were not the wonders of technology from Junk Heap, but they were decidedly enough to give most Replicants living at that time pause.

The smaller, humanlike Shades and the large one using the device eventually came out of the building, to realize the massacre of their brethren, sane and crazed alike, that took place while they attempted to put the strongest of them on something that allowed him to move easily. The wheelchair-bound Shade took the weapon he had with his pincers and moved a part of it with his sole finger, peeling it to the side to reveal a cylinder with all of its small ‘chambers’ full.

There were three attackers according to the smaller shades. Combined with his natural abilities, this would have to suffice.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trivia / Things of note :  
> \- Predictably, Kainé utterly butchered any and all scientific terms she quoted in this chapter and will continue to do so for a short while. Much of the stuff that was mentioned *is* related to real-life treatments for infertility, but there'll be some fictional mentions as well.  
> \- Pretty much every original boss Shade I create is a semi-hidden nod towards a certain franchise (it is not even always a franchise I am particularly fond of, and some of them are fairly obscure, or the hints/inspiration are barely even there) or an attempt at variation for a Shade we've already seen (The large shade in Junk Heap was, quite obviously, what the Wendy shade in the game would be like if it consisted only of gestalts of 'computer nerds', IT guys, and Windows Media Player's visual sound display). Anyone seeking to draw connections is fully welcome to voice their thoughts.


	15. 4b - Slinging

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kainé, Nier, and Emil seem to be close to obtaining even more vital information, all in one go. But not only such trips can change their objectives, they can also remind them just how difficult fighting for seemingly lost causes can be.

The next place on Kainé’s list was quite a bit different from the previous one. The place they slept at previously, while exploring it for information, and fought the Shades in had the feel of being torn out of their time indeed, appeared like it was meant to house people, information, and perhaps important items or substances.

The building they were gazing upon now was only halfway reminiscent of something the humans of old would leave behind. Half of it appeared quite familiar, like a temple of sorts, one they found it easy to call such, and half something that looked like an even more advanced construction of Junk Heap status. As if the building had sections meant for different purposes.

Whatever those purposes were, it no longer served them, but seemed to be in a decent enough state. Initially, this worried the group, making them think it was likely that many Shades would be maintaining the place; however, they seemed to be in luck and they barely encountered any resistance as they descended towards, and eventually entered, that particular place.

It was a simple enough thing to guess the reason for that. Shades must’ve been in this place until only a short while ago… but almost all of them went insane and left recently. This, however, also meant they could return, so it seemed like a good idea to simply get through it as quickly as a relatively thorough search of the place would allow.

 

While the technologically advanced side of the facility might’ve once held some major importance as well in a way that only the humans of old could understand, the role of the whole facility was clear and it did confirm the notes they’ve gained by cooperating with Grimoire Turchesi – it was a place for magical research. The fact was made particularly evident by the placement of books, stylized to appear a little like the Grimoires they were already familiar with, inside. They were not actual Grimoires, as they found out – lacking the additional face on the cover.

Before long, they successfully gathered quite a set of documents and books. All they needed to do was find the right place to sit and sort through those enough to decide what was worth bringing home, and what was not.

Right on the intersection of the two parts of the building, there was a peculiar room. It seemed like it was made for social gatherings, perhaps relaxation after magical research. Many tables, a counter similar to a tavern, and an odd little cabinet with see-through door that seemed connected to a power line no longer working. There was a bottle inside, with a fluid that was probably either alcohol or part of the place’s research, the inscription on the bottle far too worn out from time. Nevertheless, the room suited their purpose well, and they were able to sit down and start reading about the place’s research.

 

Even skimming the pages was an arduous process. After all, nearly all of it was written in languages that simply didn’t exist anymore. Comparing the titles of chapters and short fragments of text with what they’ve had for translation or using the limited-power translation device took a long while even when they did it in a hurry and for mere identification of what could be useful. Actually translating all of this information would take them a very long time.

 

But a single glance at the next thing she was reading told Kainé it might be worth it. She already had some information on certain treatments, that’s for sure, but the several lines of text she just read might’ve been the jackpot as far as actually commencing those treatments went.

Apparently, under the name that vaguely translated as Runic Unseal Tissue Regeneration Treatment, the humans of old developed a variant of magical healing that essentially allowed for exchange of sick or dysfunctional bodily matter and tissue for healthy tissue, still primarily based off the recipient themselves, as a way to avoid the necessity of what the book referred to as ‘transplants’. The details were difficult to make out at first glance, but just the realization of how the magical treatment itself was supposed to work made it far more likely that Nier’s body could gain reproductive ability.

Clutching the book and documents that detailed the supposed procedure more tightly, and yet more tenderly in her hands than she ever remembered holding an object other than her swords or the Lunar Tear gifts presented to her by those dear to her heart, Kainé shook in surprise when she heard Emil’s voice.

_\- Guys, this is somewhat… Let me read the entire section. Uhmmm… “ This experiment managed to create, and infuse with unique souls, the thirteen books, Grimoires, meant to possess the powers to guide and protect and, most of all, to fulfill the project…” - _Emil made a pause, evidently either struggling, or considering if he should read that part of the passage _.- … This word doesn’t really come up in the translation…_

[“Gestalt.”] Kainé managed to stop herself from saying that aloud. Nier already knew the term, true enough, but both her and Emil seemed reluctant to mention it even so. Or, rather, they were reluctant to reveal that something was once called “ **Project** Gestalt”.

_\- Anyway, the important part is… There’s thirteen grimoires, and, apparently, they were kept in separate areas to ensure their relative safety. There’s supposedly several tomes or editions of this book I have here, and their… Ap…appendixes? Each reveal locations of two of these books. Supposedly to ‘allow for the finding of books other than Black, Red, and White in case of an emergency without gathering too much of the necessary data in a single location.’_

_\- Essentially… if we study the ‘appendix’ part of this book, we’ll be able to learn where at least two of the grimoires are supposed to be?  And from the looks of it, that excludes Weiss, Noir, and maybe that book from your library…_

_\- You mean we could find another Grimoire and maybe use its magic to help us, and help Yonah?_

 

Kainé pondered for several moments. Certainly, the grimoires, when at their full mental faculties, were tools of the shades. Essentially puppets or allies of the enemy. Using any that wasn’t Weiss – even their alliance with Turchesi – might’ve been exceedingly risky. But the books could be defeated and destroyed. And any of the books that still followed the Shades probably should be found and destroyed – lest they’re used in some last ditch attempt to control or subdue the Replicants.

_\- It’s not guaranteed that book wouldn’t be insane or aggressive, like the one me and Emil fought, but it’s worth looking into, I guess. As we learned from Turchesi, those things are originally made by the Shades for some purpose, anyway, so don’t be surprised if we opt to try and destroy it instead, Nier._

_\- Yeah… I know. I know, but it’d still be nice to have those magical powers and someone who resembles and knows of Weiss around, again._

_\- Maybe. I think Emil’s doing a fine enough job as is. Anyway, I found something interesting – it’s a book that includes some magical health treatments, so other than what I’m interested in, maybe it could have something that’d help Yonah as well. Let’s keep sea… You guys hear that noise?_

 

The swordswoman only took a moment to analyze what her ears were picking up, and even the faintest scent pushed forth what was forever etched into her memories.

The faintest sound of flames consuming not just wood, but flickering all along a wooden construct. Weakening it. The smell of smoke slowly spreading through the air. The instinctive desire to kill something  seemed to still be inspired in her by this stimuli, even now, with so many years having passed.

_\- I don’t hear anyth…_ \- Emil’s voicing of his thoughts paused when Kainé stood up quickly, grabbing both of her swords.

This prompted Emil and Nier to turn more attentive as well, the sudden action all that it took for them to realize they might be in danger.

_\- It’s burning. The wooden side caught fire for s…_

 

It was Kainé’s turn for her words to be stopped with both motions and sounds. Something rammed itself through the relatively distant, scorched wall and then forced the door to their chamber of studies open.

Kainé couldn’t recall seeing those sorts of weird contraptions before, but they were operated by a Shade – that was all what mattered. One consisted of a seat placed upon metallic wheels what seemed to serve as means of transportation, the other it carried within its malformed wispy hand. A handle, seemingly metallic, provided support for an odd, relatively narrow and short pipe or barrel of metal with several – two or so, it seemed – mobile protrusions. This contraption was raised and directed at her, probably because she was the only one with a weapon already drawn.

It felt like the whole world slowed down when the Shade pulled the trigger. A loud noise could be heard, along with a minor release of light and smoke that told Kainé just what she needed to know – it was a long-range weapon. Her eyes, practiced from battling shades day and night and having to catch glimpses of magic attacks told her that whatever sort of ammunition the weapon fired traveled virtually in a straight line at an impossible speed. Only her reflexes allowed for the miracle of her blades raising quickly enough and at a good angle for the odd, small metallic piece of ammunition to bounce off of them and change directions. The vibrating sensation coming from her blades and the sheer impact her muscles had to stop when the shot collided with, then slid off of her blades told Kainé a very simple thing – this weapon could be deadly, and every shot any of the group managed to dodge or repel at this range was more of a small miracle and an immense dose of luck rather than anything having to do with their speed or skill, of which she just barely had enough to stop one attack.

[“I can’t do that again. I can’t deflect that weird projectile again. And any shot that’s properly aimed at a vital organ could be lethal…”]

 

The Shade’s other arm also moved. In it, a similar contraption to the weapon he shot at her with could be seen, except made entirely of wispy shade-stuff. Nier drew his weapon, and Emil took a stance as well. The creature fired at them from its purely magic-manifested weapon, and the familiar magical orb appeared, although it seemed smaller and faster than usual – to them, however, it just wasn’t a big deal. Two such shots and Kainé could already see it preparing to shoot the mechanical weapon again.

_\- Everyone, duck!_

Quick as they were, the shooter was skilled and deceptively fast as well. Nier could feel the odd bullet Kainé just barely blocked with her heavy swords graze across his armor, possibly leaving no actual wound, but striking far too close for comfort. Kainé might be in even greater danger, given she wasn’t wearing an armor with sufficiently metallic and sturdy defense.

 

Emil bombarded the being with his variant of one of Weiss’ weakest spells, the Dark Blast, making sure it had trouble moving around in any manner that’d be helpful with dodging under those circumstances, before unleashing his by now more powerful repeated spell, the awkwardly-named Sensei’s Regrettarage. The Shade seemed fairly durable for its crippled appearance, but indeed it was virtually incapable of dodging attacks that covered a wide enough field. This wasn’t the end of their problems, however – they had to be quick, and Kainé got careless when she heard the unmistakable noises of other Shades gathering in the back and preparing an assault.

Originally, the creature intended to shoot a magical orb at Nier and its mechanically-ejected projectile at Emil, but seeing Kainé’s attempt at a charge had him change the angle of his weapons and shoot at her in the last moment, with Emil easily dealing with the magical orb striking at him.

Kainé felt unnerved. She could’ve sworn she was in good shape, she might’ve barely ever reacted *this* quickly to an enemy’s move and attack, yet her combined attempt at a dodge and parry still resulted in the bullet leaving a stinging wound along her arm, as if it somehow partially changed trajectory after her attempt and caused her relatively minor damage – although the fact it had absolutely NO trouble piercing her armor was worrying.

_\- Halboltua!_

Emil’s more strong-striking attack  required the Shade to actually lean forward and block it, since it otherwise might’ve damaged to contraption it was using to move. This gave Kainé and opening to continue with her attack, although the presence of other Shades in the background was now undeniable.

[“How many of these projectiles does it have prepared? And how often can it fire that magic gun?”]

A wild slash finally indicated the first serious damage they’ve done to the opponent, and yet it seemed like the Shade was relatively unfazed.  Kainé continued with the onslaught, hoping to bring it down, and parried two of its magical gun’s orbs with her blades at an almost point-blank range, keeping her eyes on the other weapon and making sure the Shade wouldn’t be able to aim it at her properly. Kainé could now actually see the shades sliding and running across the corridor behind the larger, ‘crippled’ Gestalt, and an odd sound could be heard when its magical gun didn’t shoot once she parried the second magical orb it released in close quarters.

[“Five? Six? Seven tops. No more than seven of those things were released before…”]

That momentary pause in the gun’s functionality was what Nier seemed to wait for, ready to add to Kainé’s assault and finish their opponent off momentarily, but the magical weapon was still aimed at her. She prepared to parry another orb, but it never came. Instead, a burning sensation spread throughout her body, her muscles, shocking her. Her muscles contracted in pain from the sudden stimulation of unnatural amounts of electricity coursing through her body as the Shade proved to be more versatile than they gave it credit for.

And now, with Nier just several steps away, Kainé was staring right into the barrel of something she’d never be able to identify as a revolver, with the shocked realization that she wouldn’t be able to minimize the damage from that shot in any way, and every such shot she predicted could be lethal just moments beforehand.

 

Nier’s blade changed its course in the last moment, just before the shot. But the creature reacted just as quickly, correcting its aim. No longer did the gun seem to point at Kainé’s head or neck, and when it fired, she instead felt a warm sensation in her gut, something she recognized as bleeding from being pierced. Nier tried to chop off the being’s arm, but the first of the assaulting Shades jumped over the one that just shot Kainé, and stopped him from landing a good strike.

The shade once more aimed its gun, this time right at Nier. Furious, and careless about her own injury, Kainé swung her swords, losing grip on one of her blades. The strikes barely grazed the leftover stump of where it should have a leg and only slightly struck it in the shoulder, but it was enough to stop the being from shooting – which meant it had a limitation on projectiles strict enough it could no longer afford to waste any.

A wheezing noise was followed by a cough from Kainé as she spit up a little bit of blood, nowhere near as much as was flowing out of the wound in her abdomen. She felt this sensation before. That feeling when you knew any more damage meant you were done for, the uncertainty that you were able to survive the wounds you’ve just received in a fight… she did sometimes felt those things, even when she already was a half-shade who could regenerate from a lot of damage.

No matter who the Shade aimed at next, she wouldn’t be able to stop it. An odd glow appeared in front of her, and she could’ve sworn she was losing control and consciousness, the light pull she felt forward almost making her fall over, face first, onto the floor. Emil’s voice sounded less comforting and friendly than usual.

_\- Prototype spell : Biohazard._

 

Crescents of glowing, red energy materialized and fused into what could’ve been an odd symbol, for all she knew, just a little bit behind the Shade that shot her, and in front of most of the Shades that were coming to its aid. She couldn’t think clearly, but Nier actually recognized the shining magic had a pull, and quickly tumbled down, holding onto Kainé while the spell appeared to drag the wheelchair-bound Shade and its companions right into the middle of intersecting, crescentlike shapes. Their color changed; no longer glowing an angry red, they appeared far more like the midnight sky. It seemed like the very essence of what made up the Shades was concentrating in the spell, then distorting, changing itself to become ready for the actual strike behind it.

Smokey black mixed with vaguely luminescent, midnight sky-like colors as it was now evident matter was being sucked into that area; it wasn’t large, maybe the surface of a large table or a small room, but it appeared to be pulling in the Shades from a much larger surface. The wooden side of the building was also affected, breaking apart as a good chunk of that section started to collapse upon the confused Shades, magnifying the damage. Flare-like flickers covered the surface of the symbol, like reactions on the surface of a small star, accompanied by electric discharges. The combination seemed highly damaging to the shades trapped, as they could be heard releasing sounds of pain even before the collapsing section  fell upon them and buried them. The spell seemed to approach its final phase when Nier finished off the few smaller Shades who managed to escape the effect, clutching one of Kainé’s hands in his own and half-kneeling as he did.

 

Emil was immediately upon them, quickly inspecting the wound and realizing what happened. The magical weapon’s four arms wasted no time in attempting several processes at once, including removing the bullet and then starting the recovery of the wound. Kainé looked pale and shook uncomfortably for a moment, prompting a terrified look from both Nier and Emil, but eventually the shuddering and twitching slowed down. The white-haired woman just shook her head at them.

_\- I’m… fine. The damn lightning attack is making my muscles all… fucked up. Nier, you gotta stay focused. Some of these Shades are… bound to survive. You’ve seen how many orbs he shot before…_

_\- Yeah. Stop talking. Save your breath._

_\- I ain’t going nowhere, kid._

_\- Save yo…_

_\- I ain’t going nowhere, Nier. Keep your wits and take that guy down, will’ya?_

 

 

Her throwing a look at Emil afterwards did prove she was curious how things seemed to be. Emil’s healing powers might’ve not been quite on the level of his destructive potential, but it felt like Kainé’s flesh was *used* to recovering through a magical influence; after several moments spent fixing her, he truly couldn’t imagine any other outcome than her making a full recovery eventually. He just nodded to her reassuringly, letting her rest her head back against the wall.

 

The Biohazard spell spread out, the symbol slicing itself up into one floating somewhere above the ground and one settling right on the visible floor. In the middle, a set of one large and three smaller pillars of searing light, adding to the already somewhat vivid coloration, coursed and pulsated along in the space between the symbols. It was evident the attack was very effective at pulling in and then obliterating some forms of organic matter, but it was also evident from how Emil introduced it that it was a prototype spell and yet already serious business. The searing light dissipated, and yet they could hear an audible noise of something breaking out from underneath the rubble.

_\- He’s alive…_

 

Emil nodded to Nier for a change.

_\- It seems no other Shades are. This one must be quite special, to survive an attack that wiped out the whole group of its kin. Be careful, Nier._

_\- Focus on fixing her wounds up fully for a moment, Emil. Kainé, please don’t try to join the fight again unless the situation seems desperate, no matter how much better Emil’s magic makes you f…_

_\- Just shut the fuck up and go!_

 

Kainé erupting like this was actually reassuring, and Nier went out of his cover, preparing to continue the attack on what turned out to be a rather dangerous opponent. The large body of the Shade twisted and turned as it tried to clear the rubble off of itself and its chief method of locomotion. What the whole group likely wouldn’t be able to identify as an overbuilt, odd wheelchair appeared to be stuck for a couple of moments in one spot, unable to move as the tendrils the creature had in place of legs attempted to give it some more ground to move on. The larger Gestalt seemed to no longer care about the Shades that were dead in the wake of the spell, or maybe its focus was just that hard to break.

Nier moved in an arc, repelling a sudden burst-fire shot of two magical orbs. The creature’s other hand raised and shot quickly, but the attack was somewhat sloppy and almost telegraphed – Nier was now able to realize how and where the being would aim, and was more than ready. The young man’s blade flared with its magical aura as he used its charged attack to block the incoming bullet, ignoring where the leftover metal went in a crazy charge to finish the creature – who was so close to shooting one of these through Kainé’s skull – off.

 

He was upon the Shade, slicing quickly and observing its motions to make sure the next bullet wouldn’t strike him. Blood seemed to materialize out of thin air when he cut the being, as was common with Shades, but in his assault – bordering on fury – Nier forgot the being might’ve still held intelligence beyond an instinct to kill, and could’ve adapted its tactics, changed the mannerisms. It seemed staggered for a moment, wasting its magic orb, before showing its guile.

A quick swipe of the being’s hand ended with a resounding blastlike noise, and this close up it was impossible for Nier to fully dodge a sloppily-aimed, but almost point-blank shot, especially as he occupied himself with parrying another magic orb.

Just as Kainé’s torso did moments before, so did Nier’s leg now feel warm and moist from blood that was flowing freely from it. Another orb was fired at close range, with Nier managing to beat the pain for just a moment – or maybe working in sync with it before it overwhelmed him.

But the creature’s tactics didn’t change just in terms of where it was shooting at. Its hand flung the deceptively heavy revolver right at Nier, breaking through his defense at the moment when he was numbed with pain. With a loud thud, it struck into his armor and caused him to half-keel over from the sensation of being struck in the gut. The follow-up was quick and merciless when the creature ripped a piece of its own wheelchair out, using it not at all unlike the way Nier’s original body and soul fought off the primeval failed Gestalts with a pipe. The strike threw the young white-haired man off balance, which combined with the next ball of magic also striking him left him unable to fully dodge the next, most dangerous, attack.

 

 

_\- He got shot, didn’t he?_

_\- Stay still, Kainé._

_\- Did he get shot, Emil?!_

_\- I can’t tell, I’m focusing on y…_

_\- If he didn’t, you just need to tell me, if he did, why the flying fuck are you focusing on *me*?!_

_\- Because he’s bleeding from the leg and you were bleeding from, I don’t know, the general area housing most of your vital organs?_

 

The crackling of electricity was all Kainé had to hear to know even a shot in the leg could’ve been problematic.

The wound wasn’t exactly there anymore. The pain remained, partially, and she was dizzy from blood loss, but her flesh seemed in good condition. Unlike the condition she’d be leaving the shade in.

 

 

Nier indeed couldn’t dodge an electric attack from up close like this – not fully, and especially not with his leg having just been wounded. The crackling electricity painfully spread through his body, making him realize just how much such a discharge was disagreeing with his regular bodily functions, from his muscles to the very way his nerves worked.

But even the attack with the metallic pipe was stopped at the loud sound of Kainé’s sword, bursting with energy, cutting through the piece of furniture along the wall they used as a cover, leaving large cracks along the nearby wall and the floor, stretching towards the shade. She was still seemingly supporting herself on both the sword she used to chop herself a path and her other blade, but her body worked at the edge of its capacity so many times that this position seemed to almost fluidly go off into a vicious charge. Rather than strike Nier with it, the Shade had to quickly use its pipe at block Kainé’s strike after firing a magical orb straight into her to lessen the force of the incoming attack. Both Kainé and Nier were now aware that the most dangerous aspect of its offense – the mechanical gun – was gone and discarded, which likely meant it was either out of ammunition or he considered reloading it not worth the effort in close quarters like this.

It was clear enough for both of them. Six shots with the mechanical gun, and the first time he used the magical discharge, Kainé placed the amount of orbs he fired before it at between five and seven as well.

 

Nier had to alter his balance to initiate a proper thrusting attack, breaking through the Shade’s guard and staggering him only for the freshly-healed swordswoman to unleash the full fury of her blades. Nier couldn’t remember seeing Kainé so pissed and destructive, her heavy sawlike swords chopping apart the Shade and the contraption he used to move around, simply striking at its own counterattacks rather than bothering to parry and overwhelming the opponent with sheer, brute force when it attempted its own block. The last strike was a spin that used both of her swords for both cutting edges and blunt force, sending the virtually legless shade into a nearby wall and causing it to collapse, only a quick sideways skitter saving the shade from the gentle rays of sunlight.

They only approached him slowly after that, for a very plain and simple reason. Emil had to catch up, and if he didn’t, they needed the extra space.

 

The little figure of the four-handed, skeleton-like magical weapon moved in front of Kainé and Nier as the electric discharge was unleashed the moment the Shade could catch a glimpse of them, Emil apparently forgotten in light of its mutual onslaught with Nier and Kainé. Emil’s spear crackled with its own electricity as it tried to attract that of the Shade’s manifested weapon, Emil’s hands also stretching and pulsing with magic as he seemed to accept the full force of the bolt, then discharge it harmlessly to the sides.

Nier limped onto one of his legs, curled up, and then leaped right against the Shade just as Kainé darted forwards with another charge. The blades worked in tandem, Kainé’s swords always leaving a space for Nier’s weapon to slash through even with the swordswoman viciously trying to mangle the creature that came oh-so-close to killing both her and her companion. Nier’s own strikes were a little more disciplined, the young man striking where a human’s organs would be despite himself, as if trying to make every attack fatal with killing intent alone.

Not long after the shade’s materia finally bursted and flew around, its dying cry quickly becoming silent, the two warriors fell flat on their asses as well.

No one made note of the glistening over their own eyes. Nier, Kainé, nor Emil didn’t ask if it was pain, shock, relief, or the sheer inability to accept the fact that more than one life dear to them could’ve been lost today, simply because they were not prepared for that sort of an attack, and even their armors proved wanting in face of a weapon only similar to what the defense system in the Junk Heap seemed to utilize.

Their return home would take longer now that they needed to support one another to be able to move properly; and the recovery of Nier’s leg would take a bit longer than Kainé’s own wounds might take to get him back at full throttle. It did mean plenty of time to focus on the information they’ve obtained that day, but it also reminded them that, for the first time in a longer while, they were close to more than just failure.

 

 

 

 

It’s existence focused on memories and on what ‘was’, that it was difficult to try and imagine using its tremendous abilities to affect what *is*.

Especially given the nature of those abilities, the narrow specialization beings that controlled the web of the entire world’s memories were allowed to pursue. Even with all the cybernetic, techno-magical, and fantastical aspects to its being, it was more or less bound by a code, it was supposed to follow orders, and it had virtually no idea how it could ask for help or how to seek it.

Releasing a signal that could travel off planet meant decades, probably centuries before any advanced civilization could pick it up. Even though it was worth the effort, that seemed like too little, too late.

Tuning itself in for voices meant listening to the void. Getting nothing. The original civilization couldn’t get in touch with anyone offworld for decades of industrial revolution, why should it be fruitful now?

Yet every angle had to be covered, every possibility explored if it hoped to get help. Even if the voices never came, or if the creature itself broke down…

Or heard something from somewhere it should not. The loudest voices might be the most destructive, mercurial rather than helpful.

But something so quiet that it went undetected, almost as if it was nothing, even when heard from an odd direction, might sometimes be worth listening to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, after a long period of inactivity because of being busy and somewhat lacking motivation, I can finally slowly make a return to it.  
> Regrettably in case of this fic it now seems highly implausible that I'd be able to complete it before the release of Nier's sequel. While Nieringen is planned out and I seem to be able to occasionally pump out chapters quickly, I think we're only about thirdway there, maybe a little more. Hopefully people will be able to appreciate my take on the possibilities for what lead to the sequel and on the story of Nier, Emil, and Kainé even after the next game is out. Doubly so since it will be a VERY long time until I can play, co-play, or even watch a 'let's play' of it myself.
> 
> I believe I'll be able to update Nieringen 1-2 more times this month. Three if we're lucky, because I doubt all of these chapters will be long. Chapters 5a through 6d are rather important and I wouldn't want to rush them.
> 
> Thank you for everyone who left comments and kudos on this fic, I appreciate it. Nier didn't have a big fanbase back in the day, but I guess early next year, this might really change...


	16. 4c - Rabid Phantoms

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meeting old-new friends, and completely new enemies.   
> Can incomplete memories of one's glorious deeds still be grounds to feel at home somewhere?   
> Can Kainé and Emil protect the one secret they don't want Nier to know about when visiting places that *should* remember him?

At first, Nier understood the delay in further attempts at their search. His leg needed some time recovering, and even if Kainé seemed okay very soon after Emil healed her, she did receive an injury that might’ve been fatal if help wasn’t given quickly. But even as the information they’ve gained gave them a clear-cut goal, the group continued to delay their travel, to the point that the young man became aware why; Emil was worried for them and Kainé was worried that they’ve gone sloppy, despite the fact their last opponent’s advantage was only temporary and only happened because of how unusual – and surprising – the Shade’s set of weapons was.

 For the first time since Nier sparred with Kainé after his retrieval from the Forest of Myth, it felt like their training together was no longer meant just for him – she was very insistent on improving, although it felt like her confidence in her ability slowly returned,  even as his own was trashed again and again when it felt now that Kainé was even more removed in age compared to him, she was clearly the superior fighter of the two. The gap did feel smaller by the time his insistency finally pushed his companions to prepare for setting out; roughly fifty days after they’ve returned from their last trip.

 

This time, however, they would be traveling somewhere else entirely. The appendix of one of the books they’ve obtained did reveal some locations for Grimoires. And while one of them was so close to Junk Heap it felt unreasonable to assume the book in question wasn’t Turchesi, and the color attached to the grimoire’s location was too similar to her own to not assume it was her. On the other hand, the second location also close to a spot they were acquainted with… And Nier was curious about revisiting.

 

_\- So…_ \- The young man, closer and closer to his seventeenth apparent birthday, mused. - _…You did visit Façade after we parted ways with them, and the king… is dead. But you haven’t been there since._

 

Kainé reaffirmed the fact.

_\- Yes, indeed. And it has been a while for all of us, considering the last time you’ve been there. Things could be messy. While the tradition that welcomes us all for helping them is likely still in place, we won’t know if there will be enough people left who’d recognize us for our deeds, or what the political situation will be._

 

Emil decided to speak up, too.

_\- Given how many rules they have, I can’t imagine they don’t have rules for choosing a new monarch or other governing body when the original royal line dies out, though…_

_\- Yeah, that wouldn’t seem likely_. – Nier added. – _Hopefully that rule we’ve suggested about people being able to vote to change a rule is still respected…_

 

 

Kainé nodded. This situation… it would actually be less problematic if they couldn’t find any way to communicate with people of Façade, on some levels, than if they were able to do it. Granted, people located in Façade now may not actually be aware who was it exactly that proposed a new rule, but even so the fact they wouldn’t recognize one of the people responsible for saving their prince and then king and helping them with several minor and major issues  She vaguely remembered helping people with some missing children and gathering wolf pelts back in these days, but for Nier, those would be fresh memories. And the fact none of the people he helped would remember him, even if partially explainable, might’ve been a huge problem if he could recognize and communicate with said people.

 

What’s worse, they ended up lying about the amount of time that passed. If anyone revealed the ‘rule zero’ was at work for more than eight years, things would’ve gotten complicated as well. However, a visit to Façade was inevitable; not only were both Emil and Nier likely to desire to know what happened there and not only did they have to check for the key pieces to Shadowlord’s castle and the Grimoire there, it was also one of the few places that were likely to still be fairly safe in all of this craze; not only was their military somewhat impressive considering what the royal guard and young king were capable of doing, their research into healing the Black Scrawl might’ve yielded some minor results that helped them persevere, even if nothing could fully defeat the supposed disease itself – though it was just as likely the town had as big an epidemic of Black Scrawl-related deaths as everywhere else.

Even so, if they needed a place to move, or move Yonah to, anytime soon, they’ve had to keep their options open.

 

The long silence was broken by Emil.

_\- Given how capable they were by the end of the young king’s rule, at least in terms of fighting back against the shades and wolves alike, I doubt they’re in huge trouble, but… With the Black Scrawl running around, and them claiming their research wasn’t very effective…_

_\- Let’s not worry about the stuff we can’t fix or solve_. – Kainé interrupted, meaning the Black Scrawl as much as she did the paradoxes and issues of Nier visiting Façade. _– It’s a place worth visiting after all this time, assuming it is still anything like we remember it._

 

Worst case scenario, she’ll hypothesize they count years differently. There were too many reasons to check on the situation there now to worry about the locals revealing too much of the truth about their - slightly frail, if they were to keep up their travels - lies to Nier.

Kainé stared at her left hand for a short moment after that, something neither of the young men in the room noticed. Really, if they were all doomed to contract Black Scrawl, any additional time bought with whatever research Façade has conducted was crucial. If they weren’t, the fact someone in the world was somehow immune or temporarily not at risk could help others, assuming anyone could learn why without doing anything crazy to them. And the one place she trusted to not do anything crazy if they learned of a potential group that resisted Black Scrawl was Façade, if it remained anything like the way it was when the young king ruled it. And if she couldn’t be of help to them again, maybe they’d be to her, if she needed it.  

 

 

 

A direct transfer of the stabilizing, sanity-preserving particles was something that practically never happened when the 'Shadowlord' was still alive, given how most of said being's entire purpose was to produce and provide the mentally-reinforcing, relapse-delaying 'maso', but now, with it gone, amongst the higher hierarchy of the Court it has become somewhat more usual for the higher-up to transfer them when required by physical presence and contact. All of the Gestalts were in very much the same sorry situation and risky state, but after so many centuries that generated trust rather than paranoia - perhaps the one improvement their whole situation and longevity managed to provide to the original humanity, although said 'improvement' was on moral grounds, not in the sphere of pragmatism.

 

Being endowed with the armor necessary to  more easily endure sunlight, and then receiving a channeled influx of the required maso particles - which likely should be considered the most desirable and valuable substance in the world as far as original humanity was concerned - directly from one of the highest-ranking Gestalts alive. All of that was just a phase in the preparations for their mission.

 

The vessel was strapped and laying prone nearby as the two shades used the stabilizing particles to form their bond. It was quite ironic that they would end up copying the most reviled and villainous of their kind simply because it suited them - another sign of how far they fell, undoubtedly - by developing this process. Through attaching the excess vessel-related information from one Gestalt to another, and by tying the two together with the stabilizing particles, the Gestalt that shed the excess information entered a state where it could easily bind to a body physically. It wasn't a permanent bond, the vessel in question wouldn't go back to its human state, and the bonding itself was far less perfect than the accursed vessel-less Gestalt's was after years of practice.

 

And yet, the fact remained. They utilized one of their final fail-safes against actual extinction, after that fail-safe was reduced to a mere fraction of its capability, to produce a vessel that could never even hope to become human, just in the name of trying to retrieve their own humanity.

["Such disgusting beings, we.. no, you are. Always were."]

_\- Thy weapon is still very much in good shape, but you may need another during your travel. The two of you should take this... it may seem like just a caricature of the ancient defensive tool, but thanks to its power it may help you dispose of others... or their weapons, as the case may be._

 

The now-armored Shade handled the blade carefully while his companion for the trip - subordinate, in effect - was busy binding himself with the body of the Replicant. A moderately long blade decent for cutting and stabbing was adorned at the other side with serrations that appeared meant for capturing the enemy's weapon. Such a tool would indeed be impractical if not for its magical enhancement, but it had yet another power that might be more than useful, and it was now theirs to command.

 

 

 

 

_ Far away from the Gestalt-controlled lands, near the city of Façade ...  _

__

Claiming the town looked better or worse than what Kainé had expected would be a lie. She had absolutely no expectations, in fact. Finding the city in any state whatsoever - abandoned with its citizens scattered or having moved elsewhere, bustling with life equal to the last time she'd seen it, absolutely empty with signs of being destroyed whether by attackers or by the plague, or simply somewhat worse off than it was during the previous King's rule, anything was possible.

 

With the royal line gone, thinking the town would be better off than the last time was wishful at best. At the same time, in a city with so many rules and regulations, it seemed hard to imagine they wouldn't be able to recover. There was always a chance they'd scatter to the winds in hopes of limiting the spread of Black Scrawl when it hit, separating the healthy from the unhealthy, but it didn't appear to be the case. At least a couple parts of the city appeared abandoned or somewhat empty, and yet the town itself still clearly housed citizens - quite many, in fact.

 

Guards were posted as usual; Kainé and Nier both breathed out a sigh of relief, and Emil likely would've too if not for his bodily state.  

 

They couldn't speak to the locals, and apparently there were fewer folks recognizing them than back in the day, so actually getting into the town took them a couple of minutes, spent mainly standing around and waiting for confirmation to arrive that they were welcome -quite the far cry to the time when Kainé lead them in the first time and they were able to just waltz inside. Once inside the town, it was obvious that the Black Scrawl got here, too; many citizens carried themselves in a manner that suggested some form of illness, some bandaged up bodyparts, and the influence of the fatal disease was obvious.

 

But, curiously, it wasn't as obvious as back at Nier's home village. or even Seafront. As if the spread or development of the illness was ever so barely slowed down in this desert-based city.

Considering the source of that illness, it was somewhat peculiar.

 

Kainé's glances kept travelling around until she found what she was looking for; the Strange-Things store was still there, working, manned, and with some stuff in it that now appeared far too similar to what they've seen around the Shadowlord's castle.

 

Curiously, a man who appeared to be a guard was following them around this time. Both Nier and Kainé were worried it was from a lack of trust, but another possibility was that the locals didn't want them to get in trouble.

_\- Perhaps we'll be able to purchase a map or something_... - Nier started, trying to break the awkwardness of a now-unbreakable language barrier. Kainé was quite confident that with his memories of the area being quite recent, they'd be able to find the passageways that might lead to the location housing the Grimoire, but it wasn't a bad idea to spend time when trying to figure out the state the city previously ruled by someone they could reasonably call a friend was in.

 

Changing the direction and walking towards the regular shop, they ended up engaging in It took a lot of miscommunication, but they did manage to eventually buy it for a modicum of money. Evidently, people of Facade still accepted the land's currency. Splitting the costs made Nier realize just how close to bankruptcy he ended up being because of his shopping spree with weapons and armor. On the other hand, even with each of them having their own 'savings' now, it's not like it mattered all that much; always hanging out together and Emil's mansion being able to provide a lot, it's not like they would always need the money.

 

As they studied the map, they became aware of something impossible to miss; a large group of people walking towards them from the direction of where the king once resided, primarily guards surrounding some sort of important-looking man - though, in Facade, important-looking meant he simply had a slightly different mask and clothes compared to the others, with a first-time visitor likely not being able to tell a difference at first glance. Said important-looking person did step out of the circle of guards and greeted them with a polite bow, before speaking, surprisingly, in the more common language rather than Façade's own.

 

_\- Greetings and salutations. I hope you will forgive us for the somewhat chilly welcome. It's been a long while since you've visited, a lot has changed, and most of us wouldn't recognize the brave 'white-haired folk' that aided our last King merely from looks alone. Most of those that could died on our King's venture to aid you...  Frankly, we expected the whole affair was a failure. Yet, am I right in assuming you're the good people we can thank for removing the wolves' threat, and the instigation of Rule Zero?_

 

 

Nier was about to say something, probably either confirm or ask how was it that one of them spoke their language, but Kainé wanted to quickly dissolve that particular issue and move onto others. Because of the language barrier or the way they chronicled or remembered these events, the more-or-less heroes they managed to keep in their memory were incredibly vaguely described as 'white-haired folk' in this conversation, which appropriately covered both Nier and herself. If that was a mistranslation, Kainé did not want the envoy to stumble upon the correct words.

_\- Yes, indeed, you'd be correct. Our names would suffice, however. Kainé, Nier, and Emil. It would be an understatement to say we're sorry about the loss of your monarch... and it wouldn't be an understatement to say we owe our lives to what he and his royal guard did for us. It is the past, however, and the events that lead to it... As well as the events that happened afterwards, are ones I'd rather not remember... Would it be rude to ask how is it that you speak our language? And who rules the city now?_

\- _Oh, no, it's understandable, both your lack of desire to focus on that past and your lack of understanding of the system that'd be brought up if the royal line died out. A year after the passing of the previous king, a... council, of sorts, is formed from the people, based on certain skills and affinities. Twelve in number. Amongst the townspeople's offspring of notable lineage aged based on the previous king's age at the time he took the throne, that is ten years old, in this case meaning that children aged five to twelve at the time of his death were up for consideration. Five children are selected for a five year long process of education. At the end of this process, each of these notable young people is given the duties and privileges of a ruler for a two months long test period, and the council I mentioned, the Gathering of Moguls, which effectively rules the city in their stead during their education process votes to choose the starting monarch that will begin the next royal line. At the end of the 'test' year, two months after the final king candidate is done with their test period, the voting is concluded and the king is selected, starting a new dynasty._

\- _That's... Suitably complicated for your town, I guess_. - Nier decided to speak up.

\- _So, I take it are part of this... 'Gathering of Moguls'? Or associated with it somehow?_

_\- Indeed. Part of the reason for that being the fact I can speak your language. My official stature now is the Mogul of Diplomacy and Negotiations, and it's only fitting that I'd be able to conduct negotiations with people that don't speak *my* native tongue. Some of the other eleven Moguls, and those people working for me, may also be able to speak your language, if not to the extent of my ability, but it is doubtful many other citizens would.  We're used to our own language, you see._

_\- We're quite lucky we are able to communicate with any of you at all..._ \- spoke up, before his thoughts turned to a slightly more obvious trail. - _So, for a while now, there's been an... outbreak of the disease that took the father of your former King, hasn't it? I can't help but notice your town is faring quite well... Did you develop some sort of means to fight the disease after all, or is it..._

_\- I'm afraid that's not in my area of expertise, young Nier. Indeed, a way has been developed that gave us a slight edge in fighting the so-called Black Scrawl, but it is only a mildly effective stalling solution. Still, this wonder could only be described by the people responsible for it, and seeing as how our honored guest has left, only the Mogul of Wellbeing is in any position to explain._

Kainé seemed surprised.

\- _'Honored guest'? An outsider helped you find a way to fight the Black Scrawl?_

_\- I said it before, but it's a stretch to call it 'fight'. And not 'help us find', either. I've been told we merely emphasized on our most efficient pain-easing and stalling tactic that we used when desperate to cure our King. I truly can explain no more on my own, nor I should be sharing the information, I'm afraid, out of my own accord. I only did so because your reputation in our city is marred only by the fact you didn't seem able to save our monarch one final time.  Even if this is because he was paying his debt to you, it still means you should be treated as honored guests. Please let me know if there's anything we could actually help you with._

_\- We are searching for a certain item we're pretty convinced is somewhere near your town, so if you could help us with the general location, it'd be a lot of help. We may also need a place to recuperate once we're done, as it has the potential to be a dangerous trip... I know it's asking for much, but if it would be possible to keep a place at a tavern or an empty house saved for us just in case, it might h... -_ Kainé spoke up before the Mogul suddenly interrupted her.

_\- We'll look into the matter and select a home for you. From that time onwards, until your death or an unpredictable even destroying that part of the town, you'll be able to consider that house your own. It's the least we can do. Also, considering your... adventuring record, please do point us out to where you might be searching, just in case you run into issues that slow down your return. If it's in the town's vicinity, it shouldn't be a problem for our military to aid you._

_\- I'm honored, but do we r..._ \- Nier suddenly went silent. It seemed like he was carefully considering something. Emil and Kainé didn't need him to speak up his mind to know what he was thinking about.

After all, if they had to move Yonah away from Seafront for any reason at all, having an extra house in a relatively safe town that had a sane attitude towards Black Scrawl and a possible method of treatment that actually put a dent in it, had some sort of effect - unlike the absolutely fruitless efforts of other places - was indeed too valuable to pass on due to politeness.

 

 

 

Kainé intervened.

_\- We'll take you up on that gladly. It always pays to have a place to rest... If it is possible, we were also interested in getting a look at some weapons and armor. Seems like we're always looking into those lately._

_\- Not my area of expertise, but the Mogul of Craftsmanship and Artisans or the Mogul of Martial Matters may be able to help you with those. Both are quite competent and helped improve our military since their appointment, so I'm sure you won't be disappointed._

 

 

The rest of the conversation was polite, but short, and the so called 'Mogul of Diplomacy' assigned a young apprentice to the group to help them move around town and communicate. While a little broken, said apprentice did have decent command over their language and could communicate effectively with both parties.

 

 

 

 

After some consideration, the group decided to meet the mentioned Mogul of Craftsmanship and Artisans. Try as she might, Kainé actually couldn't remember ever meeting or seeing someone resembling said person in the city before. The Mogul was a woman just a little bit shorter than her, hints of dark or heavily tanned skin noticeable from under her mask and robes. The chambers where she lived were spacious, but mostly filled with materials or things she, or her and her apprentices, have already crafted - and she truly did seem like a master of all with the variety of items placed there, apparently created either by her own hands or those of her contemporaries. Ceramics, simple sculptures, armor bracers and some jewelry were simply the start of a long list Nier, Kainé and Emil would have to make to count all they've looked upon when they entered, and while it was quite possible the woman in question had coworkers or apprentices to help with all of that, it was clear that if they were all her work, she was more of a master of all than a dilettante.

 

But they couldn't linger there for and the second Mogul they've met on that day was unable to speak their language, which meant every meeting would have to be translated by a local who could - hopefully, the person assigned to them would have plenty of time to aid, or there were others who could. The Mogul herself seemed happy when she learned who her visitors were, and upon learning they'd be interested in obtaining or improving their weapons and armor immediately suggested visiting the Mogul of Martial Matters to get the recently enhanced local spears. She did mention the local blacksmith for purchasing new weapons, claiming the two have been keeping in touch and they have some 'very high quality ones', as far as she could tell, and offered to improve one of their weapons free of charge as a gift.

 

They didn't have the time to visit all those places, not to mention their finances were slowly becoming strained; as such, Nier decided they'd skip these visitations until after they were done with searching for the Grimoire. However, getting a weapon upgrade did seem like a good idea. With the approval from both his companions, and remembering an opinion him and Kainé shared about Beastbain being already very close to his current sword in terms of damage potential, Nier settled on upgrading the somewhat-whimsically purchased sword, to finally have a weapon he could use over his current blade, gifted to him by Emil months ago when they arrived at Emil's mansion.

 

With that, they thanked the second Mogul politely. and did reveal the rough placement of where they expected to be going to the second Mogul's apprentice. As they approached the town's gates being ready to leave, Kainé interrupted again.

_\- Now that we have that map... There's a place I'd like to see before we get to where the Grimoire's supposed to be. It will only be a small detour, and hopefully won't take too long._

_\- If you think it's important..._

_\- It may be in the future, yeah._

_\- Very well. Detour it is._

 

 

 

 

 

They searched the caves that once belonged to the desert wolves thoroughly, but there was no sign of what Kainé was looking for there. She seemed lost in thought for a couple of moments, biting her lower lip anxiously. Nier and Emil didn't push the issue, Nier because he wasn't sure what made her so fidgety, and Emil precisely because he knew.

Unless someone took a part of the key from a place they already visited, that meant the only remaining piece of Shadowlord's castle key was located in the ruins of her former hometown. For all she knew, it could've already been taken, or buried under rubble. They didn't exactly understand the force that spread the key or on what basis - or why Kainé only lost two pieces, one of which was found almost immediately past the gate on her return with Yonah. Of course, it's been years since that time; anyone could have moved these key pieces, but few - except for any remaining rational Shades who knew of its existence and the state it was in - had any reason to.

Perhaps it would've been easier to figure out the justification for the movement of these particular pieces if they had a full memory of their travels together, of actually obtaining that key's separate pieces. But all of their memories missed one crucial input : Nier's presence there. The battles they went through didn't go as their memories claimed they did, most of the finishing blows weren't dealt by either of them.

 

Emil thought that if the last piece was indeed in Aerie, it'd make sense on some level; given he blew up the town, they'd only be able to recover the key if someone retrieved both of them, and it, from that place, and he doubted that Weiss alone could've protected Kainé from the explosion he caused.

 

Emil was certain the whole situation would get a rise out of Kainé, given that not only this meant they'd have to visit her destroyed hometown sooner or later, it also meant there might be no way for them to recover the full key; while the only reason they'd ever have to return to the area around Shadowlord's castle were the facilities Turchesi's data pointed them towards, and maybe learning something about the end of their original journey, it was still better to hold the whole key just in case the remaining sentient Gestalts got on their trail and truly turned against them, to be able to bring the fight to the enemy.

 

Emil couldn't fully explain what prompted Nier not to ask anything about the detour or about what seemed to worry Kainé so much. Maybe he was in tune with her enough to realize it wasn't helpful to drill her for such information, maybe he just figured it was something he couldn't understand. Worst case scenario, he was starting to catch on to them hiding certain information from him and just figured it'd be part of it. Finally, Kainé was the one who broke the silence.

_\- That's it, then. We'll be off to that place where we can expect to find the Grimoire. I'm still glad we came here... Seems like this place is doing better than most. I know it's not an actual cure, but if there's a way to stall or lessen the effects of Black Scrawl that someone developed from the Façade's  original research, it's definitely worth looking into._

_\- But we'll have to actually communicate with this... 'Mogul of Well-being' to learn anything about it, won't we?_ \- Nier answered, sighing. - _When we originally came here, it felt like all of their looking into that illness was fruitless, but in just a couple of years someone came and did something with it that helped them bring the number of seriously sick people down during an actual epidemic. Especially concerning the nature of the illness, with Shades and whatnot, that's pretty amazing._

 

 

Emil couldn't help voicing a counterpoint :

_\- Although, to be fair, it's also a bit suspicious. Black Scrawl was happening for a while, but this is the first time we hear anything of any type of treatment with a noticeable, positive result. Unless it took this long to do actually effective research, it's worrisome to think why this person didn't reveal the information earlier or how they obtained it._

_\- You think they might have a connection to Shades?_ \- Nier asked, surprised. - _Why would they help anyone treat it, then?_

_\-  It's a reasonable possibility. Maybe their allegiance changed. Or maybe they came up with a reason as to why they should help us only now. Or maybe they didn't understand how beforehand. Who knows._

_\- One way or another_ \- Kainé returned to the conversation _\- we're getting an extra house, a free of charge weapon upgrade, there's supposedly a Grimoire here and we may learn something about Black Scrawl. I'd say that's a lot of stuff we can get done in a fairly short time. I don't mind the delays as long as none of us are in immediate risk, but...we need progress, and something to show for it._

_\- I... really want to make sure Yonah won't get the Black Scrawl again. And I would like her to remember me properly... But it's more important that everyone's safe. I agree with that._

 

Kainé's expression seemed to brighten up just a bit at that. Good old Nier.

Good to his friends, but always thinking of his sister.

 

 

 

 

 

Their arrival at the area supposedly storing a Grimoire dispersed most of their worries about anything actually reaching the place before them and securing it. A plate laying nearby claimed, according to their translation, that the area was called Mount A-something, the original name no longer possible to translate, and that it was a restricted area. The tip of the mountain seemed to be partially open, which Emil recognized as a sign of it most likely once being a volcano, but the fact someone established such a facility there meant it must've been inactive ever since the ancient days. The entrances were still shut off, layers of artificially-colored metal possible to make out from the mountain itself due to discoloring caused by rust and dustiness - originally it likely melded with the hill itself well, which combined with the layer of metal meant there was no other way to enter but with it being opened for you or through the hole at the top of the mountain, which presumably had a defense system of its own - although whether or not it still functioned was another matter entirely.

_\- This does look at least a little bit like Junk Heap. Those entrance-sealing things... Maybe they used to be doors of some type, I don't know. Definitely resemble that technology, too._ \- Nier spoke up, with Kainé just stating her opinion matter-of-factly moments later.

_\- No two ways about it... We have to blow something up and get ourselves an entrance. Do we do it here and hope no security measures against forceful entry from the outside still work, or do we try elsewhere and risk destroying something inside?_

Emil probably would've sighed if his current form didn't make it just a bit harder what was worth the effort.

_\- Let's try it here. We'll at least have an easy time returning the way we came, and if there's security measures still active inside we'll have to deal with them at some point, anyway._

 

With no arguments raised from the other two, Emil begun to slowly pepper the entrance with increasingly strong magic attacks. The metal's durability was insufficient to fully resist and, slowly but surely, the ancient door was bent and then broken in with enough space for them to get inside. After confirming for a moment nothing was about to shoot at them all of a sudden, Nier, Kainé and Emil took their first steps inside the facility proper.   

 

 

 

The inside of it did seem like it hasn't been in use forever, and vaguely resembled the deeper parts of Junk Heap, except the area itself seemed significantly more straightforward and a bit smaller. As expected, there was no illumination present inside, of any sort, leaving anything not close to the entrance far too dark for Nier or Kainé to see; as such, Emil quickly produced a little ball of light to improve visibility as they passed the corridors. There were some rooms that contained the 'computer' devices they used together with Turchesi to learn more about what they sought, but they were all inactive and some of them appeared damaged; not that they'd be able to make any use of these on their own.

 

Said accessibility and straightforwardness took a turn for the odd when similar reinforced door to the one they used as an entrance lined up the side of a corridor. Said corridor was being, agonizingly slowly, patrolled something that in the dim light given off by Emil appeared to be very similar to an actual, live person, carrying some sort of cylinders on their back, clearly damaged, along with what looked like a high-tech weapon attached to said cylinders.

That 'person's ' motions revealed themselves as not being those of an alive being when they had to turn around to continue their patrolling in an almost robotic way. Though their body did seem light and the 'person' was barely producing any noise as they stepped over to place their side towards the group, it was clearly not regular, natural human motion.  The figure then fully turned towards them, the motion of their legs suggesting their joints were what didn't operate the way a human's would. When faced with the 'person', it was clear what they were facting - a mannequin of some sorts, with incredibly neutral pale features, obviously fake stylized 'hair' and twitchy motions. Despite being clothed in a formal-looking uniform said uniform was in terrible shape, consumed by time, with multiple holes filled with wispy essence suggesting the motions were perpetuated by a Shade that desperately tried to attach itself to something that would allow it to mimic such 'patrolling' motions. Finally taking notice of them, the caricature of a guardsman released the odd noises of shade-speak along with using the barrel of its weapon to tap on the metallic door to create another noise. This alerted them that the being was either still somewhat intelligent and in control or that some force of habit instinctively pushed it to do so. Pressing something on the odd weapon it carried, the end of it released a very short burst of flames and smoke along with some sort of liquid dripping mildly from the tubes that connected the barrel of the weapon with the cylinders on its back.The burst of fire immediately stopped, however, and the shade-controlled mannequins twitchy motions suggested it was still expecting for something else to happen.  
  
That was, of course, far too slow progression for fighting someone like Nier or Kainé. In mere moments, the swordswoman severed the odd tubes just in case and hacked up the mannequins body, causing the shade's essence over it to tremble and spill the blood-resembling liquid they produced when properly wounded. Trying to mend itself over was a hopeless endeavour when  Nier followed up by piercing its body through and tossing it on the opposite wall just in case it intended to open the heavy door for something or produce more noise. One glance between Emil and Nier prompted them to charge a little further past the mannequin while Kainé finished the job, hacking its body into a less and less recognizable mass with the connections formed by the Shade's own essence trying to keep it together and restore its form before that, too, dissipated entirely.

 

Emil and Nier themselves quickly noticed another, very similar twitchy shape approaching along the side-corridor, and a protrusion along the wall suggested the corridor itself might've not been its target, but some sort of alarm system in it was. Whether the alarm worked or not was insignificant; it was better to stop the oddly-behaving Shades before they actually tried sounding it. Nier darted forwards, clutching his blade both-handed and severing the being's assumed form clean along the mannequin's waist. The wispy essence of the Shade that controlled the body stretched itself and held the form together just barely, looking unnaturally stretched as it stopped the top half from flying off to the side and falling down, but Nier's subsequent chop from below that almost severed the top half into two separate parts and a strong kick that propelled the mannequin's legs further down along the ground. Surprisingly, the Shade's essence travelled after the legs and detached itself from the top half. Nier paused for a moment when he heard an extra set of footsteps. It was difficult to say which direction they came from or if they belonged Kainé or not. He hesitated in the next move, and that momentary delay was all it took for a third mock warden to arrive. Said third warden wasted no time in grasping its cut-up companion's lower body and lifting it right over its head.

The two Shades' essence quickly stretched towards one another in the form of tendrils forming knots or melding together, but their physical forms didn't have enough flexibility to accommodate for the apparent fusion. Slowed down, the dangling legs of the first mannequin released a magical orb each, giving the Shade's a modicum of time as Nier used his weapon to parry them. Fusing closer together, the head and upper body of the more intact mannequin ended up being covered in dark gray and black shade particles that partially hid the fact that the cleanly severed lower body of one figure was essentially crushing the head, neck, and shoulders of the other from the two trying to meld together.

Emil didn't waste time quickly releasing magical beams and short burst of energy missiles into the fusing mannequin-coating Shades, with Nier rapidly following it up with a quick stabbing attack after a short dash forward. Sidestepping as the legs of the original mannequin came down to try and strike him, he was nevertheless followed by one of them and given a surprisingly strong blow just as he was about to continue splitting the fake bodies into smaller and smaller pieces with a couple wide slashes from the side, causing it to not be as effective and only burying his sword halfway through the more intact mannequin's hip.

Nier responded with a kick of his own, freeing his blade from the Shade's makeshift body and giving Emil the space necessary to blast  the fusing duo with a Halboltua spell, the impact of the two attacks  unbalancing the legs of the intact Mannequin and making it fall on the ground.

 

Because the small ball of light Emil produced only provided light illumination and was the sole source of light at the time, Nier was actually startled by a shape leaping from behind him and crossing the corridor in a single jump easily before the flash of dual blades made him realize it was merely one of Kainé's acrobatics. The swordswoman was apparently done with the other Shade, and might've even been checking how this particular battle unfolded, but evidently decided it was past time to intervene.

Kainé's twin swords both descended upon the malformed mannequins and the shades possessing them with a loud crunching noise as even the floor seemed to crack after that strike. Several quicker slashes immediately followed, with Nier carefully grasping the blade of his sword once more. The shade essence escaping from the mangled bodies on the floor and trying to regenerate was quickly treated to a chop from above, severing the imperfect fusion and finishing the job with a quick thrust just as Kainé joined the fray once more, killing the other separated Shade as well. Looking down both corridors and the turns at the end of them, the group decided they were safe for the time being.

_\- ... We should check what's past these large metallic doors. Could be something they were trying to protect._

_\- Or more of them._

_\- Yes, but... you've seen it. They're clearly not very strong and no longer sane. They were operating on some instinct, yes, but a Shade would have to fall really far to attempt to treat a fake figure like that as their body. Heck, clinging to these things was impairing them._

_\- Let's try opening the door then... Quietly. But no getting cocky, we can't be sure why these Shades were acting like that._

 

 

 

It felt... odd, eerie even, to be making a hole through the door and trying to be quiet while looking left and right in the beshadowed corridors. It'd be hard to procure anything from that place, so it was pretty clear they'd have to focus on getting the supposed Grimoire rather than studying whatever else could've been left there. Finally, an almost circular shape was made in the metallic door, and Emil additionally cut out little handles at the sides; Kainé and Nier used them to carefully pull the large slab of metal out and placed it on the ground, with Emil directing the ball of light towards the hole so they'd be able to see what was inside...

And the inside was surprisingly small, and stored surprisingly little.

 

Behind the metallic door was a very small room, or a cell, more like, evidently unused for a very long time. At a first glance, it appeared to be empty; but a closer look proved some older tech scrap was laying in the corners of the room. But, one particular corner didn't have anything that looked technological in it.

Instead, it was something that looked much more like a corpse. And old and rather desiccated corpse, to the boot. Normally, finding it there would just cause a gasp and make them ponder aloud, or leave right away.

It was the fact that the corpse seemed to not be one of a human, and not even exactly a 'corpse', that gave them pause and made them stare for those precious couple moments longer.

 

 

 

 

 

In the area once known as Forest of Myth.

 

It truly was an endeavor that should not have yielded any type of results anytime soon.

Spreading signals through space was virtually hopeless, even though it merited an attempt at doing so, because the being wasn't actually equipped to do that properly. Even if the signal could reach far out enough into space, it obviously traveled very, very slowly, and would have to be decoded by anyone who picked it up; certainly not something that would lead to any sort of actual event in the... closest century or a few.

But the same could be said of picking signals up. No matter how powerful the entity was, there just seemed to not be any plausible source to emit something that would be possible to pick up easily, anytime soon, especially not with part of its magical and technological powers and abilities being used to work on that moronic, inhumane process the being's technically 'supervisors' demanded. Getting anything within a span of a small number of months was just... inconceivable.

 

It was certainly difficult to pick up the sudden difference, then to decipher and understand it. It felt more like a very repressed memory than a signal from elsewhere, but it was no memory the incredibly ancient being remembered, or could call its own. The language was different, too, but as thoughts went, it was obviously easy to absorb a thought that appeared within one's own self, even if it wasn't made in one's own native language.

The way the thought was articulated was definitely alien to the being, but remarkably human. Bearing certain undertones of softness and an almost melodic resonance, despite the fact that it also carried a surprising undertone of determination and resolution, the being easily imagined it being spoken with a voice belonging to a woman.

"This world... This world is wrong as well, isn't it?"

 

 

 

 

 

It's not like the corpse didn't resemble a human's, it's just that one could say it somehow wasn't. Obviously, only a skeleton really remained behind, yet clinging to bones in places of some of the tendons and filling up one of the eyeholes and part of the oral cavity was some crystalline, mineral substance. The skull itself was where the more remarkable differences could be seen; all of the bones that would've helped create actual facial features, including the nasal and cheek bones, appeared flattened and reduced, making the front of the skull appear more like a mask.

Nier actually took a step inside of the cell, observing the remains, while Kainé continued simply staring inside, with an odd feeling raising inside of her. Somehow, the corpse felt more disturbing to her than them trying to access the room with it when surrounded by dark corridors only illuminated with Emil's magic. Looking at the remains, the being's arms seemed to be built differently compared to a human's, but other than being mildly longer, the only actual difference upon closer inspection was that the forearm bones were melded together with the same crystalline or mineral substance the shards of which appeared to gather in some cavities. It seemed fairly... mundane in its looks, for some reason, but in the dim illumination and with none of them a true specialist it was hard to say what it actually was. The final difference was in the fingers and toes that seemed to definitely be poised to have some sort of mean claws or talons attached to them when the creature was alive.

Emil was the first to break the silence, as he seemed to ironically be the least affected by seeing the corpse out of the group.

_\- It... looks almost like a person. Was this a holding cell of some sort of jail? Were these Shades impersonating prison guards?_

Nier shrugged, looking at the creature still.

_\- There's a lot of this crystalline th..._

_\- Don't touch or taste that, Nier._ \- Kainé stated out of nowhere, in an almost commanding voice - _Who knows what caused these guys to lock it in here. And get out from that cell, if it's a disease it may still be dangerous in there._

Nier turned around and looked at Kainé. She didn't exactly look scared, but noticeably... unhinged. He knew she sometimes felt odd after battling Shades, but this hasn't really come up ever since she was detached from her Shade half... And yet, while not explicitly scared, it did feel like a response similar to the last moments before deciding between fight or flight were welling up within his companion.

 

["Is she... feeling eerie and uncomfortable about this place? Maybe it reminds her of something from her past, maybe an unpleasant memory of her home village or some event from the time we spent apart. Well, it is a facility of an old civilization within a mountain, and it's incredibly dark... Not to mention everything looks so creepy with so little light. I was actually a little startled when she joined the fight, so maybe it's affecting them as well..."]

 

Nier tossed one final glance at the corpse. Maybe there was more to it. Looking at it created a certain, rather awkward feeling,; Nier was incapable to accept the corpse belonged to a person, but it felt like it had to. There were too many vague familiarities about the scene itself as well as the substance fused with the bones or sprinkled all over the skeleton's cavities as well, making him feel just a little odd. Maybe Kainé felt the same, just to a greater degree.

_\- We won't be checking the other doors then, I guess?_

_\- If they're just holding cells, I guess there'd be no point to it._ \- Emil voiced his own opinion.

_\- Let's leave them be. I don't want to come across any more disgusting corpses like this, anyway -_ Kainé finished the conversation, leading the group down the next corridor.

 

 

It was peculiar indeed. For someone surrounded by a lot of death and who enjoyed fighting, Nier couldn't remember the time a corpse would both make her look the way she did at that moment and express with such strong resolve the opinion that it was 'disgusting'.

Nier couldn't feel about it so strongly. Looking at it, it was confusing, but it truly felt like an ancient corpse of no one, something less than a person, something that could no longer affect them and they already paid too much attention to.

Looking into the mask-like skull's eyeholes, empty except for the little dusts and crystal shards of the oddly familiar white substance in one of them, while thinking these thoughts did give him a shiver, so he turned to carefully look around the shady corridors, instead.

There was no reason to get surprised by any more of those supposed wardens, after all.

 

 

 

 

The closer they came to the center of the mountain, the fewer corridors and more rooms with odd equipment - some of it recognizable as 'computers' - they've seen along the way. Some rooms looked like practice or training chambers, other house huge amounts of metal equipment, and one looked like it once housed food and similar supplies, but all of it has since completely decomposed with only mould and some bones sticking out of tilted-over, wide open, odd white containers with a double set of little door-like openings suggesting it was in fact some sort of a pantry. Once they passed that area, they found themselves in a large lobby with a shape similar to a cross; paths converged in the middle, with the opposite entry having another impressive set of doors blocking the way, while the two corridors perpendicular to that one were equipped with a regular set of doors, looking almost deceptively homely and nearly out of place for the whole area in general.

Still, they did decide to check these side corridors out. The one on the right consisted of a small room with a computer, some books, and a large cabinet containing many small, cylindrical tubes equipped with a piston on one end and a needle on the other. There was another cabinet in the room as well, far more adorned and ornate, and contained a short axe with a blade that appeared to be crafted more from some type of rock than from metal, albeit shiny.

 

_\- Seems slightly out of place, doesn't it?_ \- Nier spoke up softly, looking at the axe. - _Though, you can tell there's something different about it compared to your run-off-the-mill rock made tool._

_\- It looks a little like that sword we found in the fields for some reason. You know, from that shade with a hand in place of junk. The blade of the axe, I mean. Like it's from a similar material._

_\- Think it's made by the same blacksmith?_

_\- Maybe. Maybe not. Probably has some sort of power, though. I mean, a place where they keep weird freaks locked in cells and Shades grow insane enough to try and possess lifesized figurines, and that thing's displayed like a trophy or a religious symbol._

_\- Should we take it, then?_

_\- Sure. Might be worth something._

 

Unceremoniously, Kainé used the handle of one of her swords to crack open the glass cabinet and pulled the axe out. She spared a glance at the odd tubes in the other cabinet, as they felt like they had some meaning to them that she should understand, but she just shook her head and followed Emil into the opposite corridor.

 

The small figure of the boy-turned-magic-weapon placed one of its four hands on the door knob and turned it, opening the door and not expecting to find anything particularly dangerous inside. Indeed, at a first glance the room did appear to bear a lot of similarities with its counterpart, only this time the dim illumination Emil's ball of magic light provided showed a bed right in the center of the room, and made clear the motions of two figures previously merely resting their fronts against said bed, as if resting, or watching over someone sleeping on it. Just another glance proved the figures were, in fact, shades, their characteristic yellowish-looking extremities, their bodies that seemed to partially consist of anything but actual flesh, and their large eyes, seeming to slowly open and stare at the group. In turn, Nier, Emil and Kainé were also stopped in their tracks, themselves staring at the peculiar scene the shades provided them with

.

Surely enough, there was something on the bed, but it looked like a more see-through version of the mannequin wardens. A life-sized doll of some sorts, perhaps, the difference being it was composed entirely of a solid crystalline substance, not dissimilar to the one they found in the cell with a corpse in it. The oddest part about the scene wasn't that the two Shades appeared to be watching over the statue - like shape on the bed as if it was sleeping, or maybe expressing sadness or crying over it as if it passed away in its bad, but the fact the statue was actually chained to the bed's ends, with the chain tying around its calves and elbows and an extra set of handcuffs also connecting where its wrists would be to the bed. The shades released a haunting noise different from most Nier ever heard, although Emil and Kainé did seem to hear the odd shade-speak noise erupt like that before, a voice that might emulate despair and anger.

 

 

They'd never learn how long these two shades were in that very room, bent over a figure crafted from some familiar-looking mineral, but it was clear the experience made them simply wait out the time period until they fell into complete insanity, relapsing the way most 'Gestalts' did these days. Witnessing something intrude on their solemn scene, they sought to simultaneously protect one another and the figure on the bed, and join themselves to the nearest solid and potentially protective shape they could find, like trying to possess a body or don an armor. And so, their essence spilled itself over the chains that bound the figure to the bed, the bed itself, and finally melded together and wrapped around the shape on the bed itself, the mix of chalk-white and see-through parts of it covered with the dark gray and black of the two Shades. Compared to the ones they've seen in the hallways, these two simply melded together and fused completely in a matter of seconds, crafting themselves into an even odder monster as two extra arms now extended from the shape on the bed's sides, the shade's eyes and faces now located on the figure's abdomen and lower chest, inadvertedly making Kainé realize the figure seemed to have small bumps similar to small  breasts that the shade's coating first emphasized, then hid away. Their essence moved up then spread awkwardly, some of it flowing back down as if it was an upturned collar; the rest spread along the body of the figure, causing small cracks to appear that were immediately taken over with it and making it seem like infested veins covered its neck along with some of its face, arms, and legs. The additional arms along with tendrils of the shade's essence moved towards the chains and handcuffs, and pulled with frightening force, combined with the figure itself also making a surprising motion afterwards; as if it had some sort of fake inner joints to operate upon. This mobility came at the price of the statue's material cracking apart again and sprinkling over the bed and the floor itself much in the manner of sugar or salt spilling across a table.

They all stared in momentary fascination, but Nier was quickest to move, as if he was the fastest one to understand what was going on; it felt like he could identify with the shade's reaction, as if it was an attempt to protect one's home, friends, or family, but he had to defend himself against it nevertheless. One of the shades' arms swiped itself in the groups general direction once the arms and legs of the figure were 'freed' from their constraints, although the clanking of chains and the constant cracking of the figure's oddly familiar material as the shades forced it to move in surprising ways was audible as it tried to sit up, the cuffs and chains hanging from its limbs and further impairing its motions. It released a large number of small pellets not dissimilar to the regular magic bullets they were used to, but more diminutive and much faster. Nier's blade rose to deflect them as they seemed to come up only on a single plain and high, not spreading out much and merely following the movement of the Shade's hand.  Kainé's blades were also raised moments after, with the amalgamate shape standing up from its bed and more of the diminutive dust-like crystals of the material the figure was crafted from hitting the ground, although the motions were curiously far more lifelike than those of the mannequins they've seen in the corridors before. Emil, Kainé and Nier jumped back when a hand apparently formed from the second Shade also pointed towards them in a weaving motion, looking as if sprayed out some of its substance that immediately appeared to ignite in a mockery of flame, the black, red and yellow coloration of it making it seem like nothing other than fake fire.

The extra arms twisted themselves and extended, reaching towards the floor at the side of the bed and into a cabinet in the room not dissimilar to the one they just took an axe out from. They receded closely to the body now standing over the bed, one wielding an iron pipe and the other an actual weapon, a spiked mace that was apparently extracted from the cabinet.

 

Something was worrying about this whole scenario, and the fact they haven't encountered any shades in a while only to stumble upon ones that behaved so oddly and fused themselves in such an awkward manner yet managed to produce an awkwardly menacing visage caused Emil to react instinctively as well. He didn't really think or carefully select the spell this time, merely firing out a beam of light right from his eyes despite said spell only being a 'prototype' version and effectively a needless strain on his improved, but still imperfect control over his own magic. Blazing across the being's bodies in a ray, he even moved it instinctively up along the fake upturned 'collar's'  middle opening and across the crystal statue's neck and, surprisingly exhibiting some subtle but visible features, face.  The attack almost caused the whole construct to stumble backwards, but with the extra arms and its mass rearranging, it was clearly going to attempt a jump and attack them right away, no matter how implausible it seemed with such an obviously fake body.

Emil's own body just reacted instinctively, moments after his rational mind decided he didn't want to witness even the attempt.

_\- Sensei's Regrettarage!_

The more powerful than usual series of magic missiles kept shoving and pushing the creatures fused to a fake, but inexplicably chained statue along the ground in the small room, until they tipped it over and made it fall backwards, taking the bed with it and causing a loud commotion in the room as one of the figure's arms seemed to break from the impact. Smashing the ground with both the iron pipe and the mace, it begun bringing itself back up to a kneeling position, more sounds suggesting the material the statue was from should not plausibly support such motions and that they were losing more and more of it across the floor as the basis for their shape cracked and broke apart, but evidently with something about the fake body making it possible to arch its knees like that without breaking apart completely. The faces on the statue's torso, right underneath the collar-like construct that marked the start of little 'veins' travelling up along its neck, simultaneously opened their mouths and expelled an almost liquid shape made of their very essence that melded together into a relatively oval missile that traveled towards the group, now back in the cross-shaped lobby just behind the door. It felt cold at first, almost as if it absorbed heat from its surroundings, but when one of the shade-shaped extra hands swiped in the same motion as before releasing little magical bullets, upon striking the odd ball with them it suddenly exploded with inner heat, loud grunts from the group signaling that they all felt it and were tossed back further, the facsimile of fire they've seen before now evidently consuming the wooden door before it dissipated, although the damage left behind looked much like genuine flame.

 

Emil wasn't going to be wasting any time after such a display, and immediately answered with several attacks of his own. With the statue-like body the shades attached themselves to falling apart more and more, it was difficult for the Shades to get into melee range or move at all, making the fact they grabbed weapons to protect themselves - or maybe the body - with meaningless. Kainé raised an eyebrow at Emil's immense input into the fight. It felt like all three of them were on their toes, but her and Emil were somehow more affected... despite Nier's youth and relative lesser amount of experience, which would lead one to believe that combined with his temper he'd be the most likely one to be affected by experience. And yet it was visible that Emil's reaction was as odd as it was irrational and tactically implausible. Shooting a monster with a prototype spell that threatened his control over his power? Check. Continuing to attack even though they seemed to have the relative advantage, but doing so nigh-blindly and not checking if his hits were connecting? Check.

 

Nier picked up on this recklessness as well.

_\- Emil, I know it's actually a better idea to fight them at a distance and all, but we already have the advantage, so throwing so many spells around shouldn't be nec..._

Emil seemed to interrupt Nier's concerns with something that sounded remarkably like if he started to say he's fine, or he knows what he's doing, but at the very beginning of the answer, a long metallic object flew out of the room that was further disheveled by Emil's barrage of spells, and hit him square on the chest, even causing him to fall over.

Kainé hissed. If the Shade tossed that spiked mace and hit one of Emil's limbs or his head, it could've dealt serious damage. What's more, the strength of the toss meant the Shades were still relatively fine even after such a prolonged attack, so Emil likely was partially wasting energy.

The Shades revealed themselves, still clinging to the body of the statue. The facial features on it where almost completely eliminated from Emil's initial beam attack and the subsequent barrage, the previously crushed apart arm was now completely obliterated, the more well-preserved one was missing two fingers, and one of the statue's legs were broken off at the knee cap. However, the extra Shade limbs were still supporting the whole form, and what's more now that it had less mass they were capable of propelling it in a leap right at where Emil's prone form was, mace in hand.

Thankfully, this time both Kainé and Nier reacted quickly enough. Kainé placed herself in the way of the attack and used her dual blades to capture the mace's shaft right below the head, twisting her body and arms to push the attack sideways and nullify it.

Nier himself went right into the fray with a proper strike, charging his sword up with elemental power and chopping through the body of both the two Shades and the statue, burying his sword halfway through in the latter before shifting his weight and managing to break it apart somewhere along the hipline with a strong twist of the sword.

It indeed felt familiar. A little bit like grinding down salt, except trying to cut with a sword instead of actually grinding.

 

Was the crystalline substance salt?

Was it the same for that 'corpse' in the enclosed room earlier?

The Shades remained connected to the upper body of the statue, and Kainé was evidently furious about them managing to land such a dangerous-looking hit on Emil and trying to follow it up right away afterwards. Or perhaps she was just on her toes for some reason today. One way or another, the swordswoman's twin blades immediately descended on the imbalanced upper body of the statue along with the shade-matter clinging to it, more slamming it down into the ground than cutting, and she followed it by two alternating slashes that had her blade's sawlike portion tear through both the fake and real body of the enemy. This was finished with yet another chop from above, completely shattering the torso of the statue and practically splattering the floor around it with the shade's 'mock' blood. Wanting to make sure it wouldn't regenerate anymore, Nier quickly pierced his blade through the now malformed shape of the Shade before drawing his blade back, both him and Kainé panting from the momentary exertion as the fused Gestalts dissipated in their final passing.

_\- Emil, are you okay?_

_\- Y... yeah. But... I think there's more approaching. I feel some magic powers moving, and... you can hear footsteps too, right?_ \- Emil asked, picking his spear off of the ground as the two turned towards the passage from which they came, and indeed, not only did they hear the light sound of feet along the ground, there was some clear light coming from that part of the facility, as if someone carried a torch. While that's something a human would do, indicating they might've actually been about to meet someone friendly or completely unrelated, Kainé was wary, and kept her blades lightly raised.

_\- Emil, try opening that last door. We'll make sure our guests are... entertained, if need be. Plus, we need you away from the fight in case light is needed._

_\- On it... -_ Emil said, mildly dejectedly. He didn't know why he was trying so hard, and so ineffectually, to attack these two Shades. Perhaps it had to do with a memory long buried or another, but if it was that, or pure instinct, why did it feel Kainé acted almost the very same way? Being a fighter, it didn't impact her as much as it did him, as he was just a boy stuck as a weapon, but it was still odd.

 

Almost as odd as the fact when he directed his beams to try and tear through the door in front of him, he felt another source of magic moving, and right in front of him as well.

 

The light of the torch illuminated the room's other end as a figure barged in. Initially it did seem like they were getting some support from the village; the man definitely looked human, wearing long brown pants and some sort of short-sleeved shirt, and bore some resemblance to the locals of Façade with his skin tone seeming darker than that of people from outside of the desert. But he didn't wear any sort of clothing that would resemble what the locals wore, and his skin had more of a coppery tint; almost red in some ways, as much as a healthy person's skin tone could resemble the color red. Almost as if he was of an ethnicity neither Nier nor Kainé ever came in contact with... But one part of his body was all too familiar for the former. Along the flesh of the man, along his skin, starting at the side of his neck, shoulder, left forearm, and down his body - the rest of possibly covered area hidden away with clothing - little signs resembling ancient scripture slid around and floated, not dissimilar to Black Scrawl itself. But the feeling of power and the in-mixing of dark ooze and flashes of yellow, orange, and red into the pattern, along with Kainé's experience with the condition told her it wasn't Black Scrawl at all.

 

Part of this man's body was taken over by, or bound with, a Shade. The other side brandished a curious type of blade, resembling a shortsword with one side of its edge serrated, resembling teeth just a little bit. Kainé didn't know what she was supposed to feel at this point. Kinship? She never met anyone who shared her previous condition, and it was hard to tell what this man was here for. He had a weapon. His body was that of a warrior, fit and tense as if ready to strike, although he didn't look particularly 'seasoned', as if more someone who engaged in back alley combat than someone who'd fight in a war or went out regularly to battle Shades nowadays. His hair looked long and mildly unkempt as well, only being partially tied into a ponytail stopping it from being impractical.

_\- What the heck are you doing here? Did you follow us? What are you here for?_

 

That... was unnecessarily aggressive, but she was on edge so much that day it was difficult for her to soften her tone of voice in time. The man responded, but he spoke in no language she heard before; it didn't even resemble the Façade's way of speech all that much.

What came in behind the man dissolved any hope of this person being a friend. An armor and a mask obstructed it somewhat, but there was no doubt; this was a Shade. A shape slightly larger than a human adult male appeared, covered entirely in a blue and white armor of rock and metal, presumably to protect the wearer from the sun's rays. The creature had a neck far longer than a human's, adding to its height, the back of which all the way up to the highest slope of its 'skull' mildly flared out in a shape resembling a cobra's hood. Where its face should be, the apparent Shade wore a black and red mask with large eye-holes and a mimicry of a beak at the front; from underneath it, little tendrils tinted yellow and mild green poked out, proving the body underneath was that of a Shade.  They've also brandished a weapon, a rather long polearm resembling a spear or ranseur made almost entirely out of metal. With the combined height of the being and length of the weapon, she wouldn't be surprised if a skilled fighter was able to keep most enemies at a distance, particularly in a formation.

_\- ... I doubt those two are friendly, Kainé._

_\- ... You don't say?_

 

 

The shade placed an arm on the man's shoulder and whispering something in the odd shade speech only confirmed the two were allies with one another, and Kainé couldn't remember ever being allies with a shade that wasn't Tyrann. Not wasting any time and wanting to put distance between the two potential enemies and Emil, Kainé started sauntering over to the pair, which immediately changed into a mad dash when the Shade pointed its spear at Nier and emitted three magic orbs from its three-pronged end, shooting them at the young man while the red-skinned half-shade apparent replicant raised his own sword-like weapon. Pale green energy flew out of the palm placed on the man's shoulder and passed right along the rune-like inscribing marking him as a half-shade, shifting to a more silvery mix of fog and light that surrounded his weapon. Kainé thought he was charging an elemental attack, but it was nothing of the sort; instead, the man's arm turned a very pale white, then became transluscent, with the rest of his body following. In the dim light provided by Emil standing a fair bit away, this rendered the unknown man almost completely invisible as he dashed and quickstepped to the side, quickly dissipating in the shadows as he stepped away from Kainé, whose attention was further disrupted with the shade monster using his long reach to take a quick stab at her. Kainé had to do a quick backstep herself, and Nier was about to move in to help out, but she stopped him in his tracks.

_\- Don't move from there! Watch your sides and back, and defend Emil! This bastard's not completely invisible so you may be able to see him!_

 

In the meantime, the tall Shade followed up his initial stab with a more dramatic lurch forward, forcing Kainé to parry with her blade. This time, she was underestimated, as the Shade likely had no idea of the sheer strength she had in her legs. With just a light tilt forwards and pushing herself towards him with her feet, she immediately both cut the distance much shorter and gained extra velocity for the swing from above with one of her blades. The force behind it not only punctured or caved in the armor along her blade's saw-like protrusions, it even caused the Shade to stumble back a couple of steps to avoid losing balance. Seemingly surprised, the Shade grasped its polearm with both arms and struck with a much more precise and dangerous attack, trying to stab Kainé in one of her legs, forcing her to dodge and increase the distance again.

["He's not a real warrior... but this guy's definitely had practice, and is still sane, or at least smart in his insanity. Probably not a relapsed Shade yet, though. The armor's better quality than most of what we've seen on Shades, the weapon is, too, and he seems to have a much higher skill with magic... Did we run into a badass one?"]

 

Kainé was distracted by the noise of metal blades clashing to her side as Nier apparently managed to parry a strike from the mostly-invisible half-shade in the last moment, still much closer to Emil than her. Emil's voice following soon with a surprised yelp also didn't help her concentration.

She should've guessed there'd be some security measure at the door that may still be active, but she never expected the familiar blackish ooze that also covered part of the now turned mostly-invisible man to be part of it. A Shade bound to a set of doors? Emil withdrew to avoid an attack, taking a couple of steps to touch his back against Nier's, seemingly aware there was a hard-to-perceive opponent around them. The ooze poured forth and formed into more material-seeming tendrils that evidently sought to enclose the metallic door and give them further protection, and potentially lock them in that lobby with these two new opponents.

But distraction was a bad idea in the middle of a fight. While Kainé saw the orbs forming at the tip of the ranseur-like polearm of the tall Shade, she only barely followed the motion of his palm and an extra appendage that came up from behind him, which looked like a large reptilian tail.    

They both moved incredibly fast as the shade's sudden motions spawned a bunch of magical orbs between the two of them, with the Shade unceremoniously thrusting his weapon, the magic orbs on the top still attached, into the mess and causing all of the orbs to erupt in spiralling and chaotic motions that Kainé struggled to dodge and parry until several of them struck her. That wasn't the end of it, either; the Shade quickly followed up with a quick set of stabs and thrusts from the weapon, forcing her to dodge several times while barely keeping herself balanced, until finally a strong chop from the side reminded her that just because Nier and Emil might've initially appeared to be the red-skinned man's targets when he dissipated didn't mean they were the only viable targets for him. With one of the stabs managing to pierce through her defense and armor and the strong slice from the side doing the same, Kainé finally took a more serious amount of nonmagical damage for the first time that day.

Instinctively, she sidestepped and parried another strike from the translucent man, then surprised him with a sudden kick from the side that definitely sent him flat on his ass, as the heavy sound of a body hitting the ground confirmed. Simultaneously, Kainé just barely managed to block one of the Shade's thrusts, but this time the armored Gestalt took a longer step forward and pushed hard, then let go of his weapon with one hand when she was unbalanced and punched her right in the gut, almost knocking her down on the floor and definitely causing her to lose breath, the armor only helping in putting more strength behind the strike.

 

_\- Kainé!_ \- Nier exclaimed empathically, seeing his companion in a definite tight spot.

_\- Okay, that's it! Enough! Nier, quick, let's move towards Kainé! We're opening this door NOW! Emil Beam, Prototype!_

The little skeletal-looking four armed magical weapon-boy turned his prototype spell on the door, piercing through the shade-matter trying to cover it and burning a hole through the middle as he pushed his back against Nier. At the same time the young swordsman followed suit, moving quickly towards Kainé while trying to keep in touch with his spell-slinging friend. Kainé blocked a strike from the Shade again, using just the strength of her arms to repel it and shove it off to the side before tilting her body and sending her leg in a low kick to the Shade's own lower limbs. She almost succeeded in getting him to fall, but at the last moment he supported himself with his tail and the back of his weapon. Quickly correcting his stance as much as he could, the Shade thrust the end of his polearm at her despite little leverage or power behind the thrust, but she just twisted her body; using one arm to push the weapon aside right below the three-pronged end, she sent her other sword right at the creature's torso, and judging from the sound it released this time both the spikes of her swords and the force behind it successfully inflicted physical trauma on him, piercing and crushing the armor even more.

She'd be in a pinch when the angry Shade corrected his pose and tried to push out a series of magical orbs from an extended palm right into her, but Nier was already next to her, using his blade to push the shade's arm up and force a miss. Kaine quickly poised herself back on her feet, mildly sliding them back and away from her opponents like a cat would, preparing to pounce, but her eye just barely registered motion now that Emil was closer; rather than continue attacking the Shade, she jumped right in front of where said motion was noticeable and hacked with her blades. Blood spilled everywhere as the force of her strike pushed the half-shade man off his feet again, huge gushing wounds present along one of his arms and both sides of his body as he fell on his back.

_\- Halboltua!_

 

 

Despite the possibility of finishing one opponent off with it, Emil aimed his spell at the door instead, weakening the construction and the Shade protecting it further. She only now noticed a clear background noise that raised itself to louder grunts and screeches; the shade at the door was apparently constantly releasing sounds, which might've been a call to its companions around the whole facility. At the last moment, she managed to dodge the polearm-bearing Shade's triple magic orb blast from up close, and Nier quickly took her place by trying to attack one of the new enemies; however, the tall Shade managed to trap his blade between the three prongs of his own weapon and push the attack back. Shifting his weight, the tall creature simultaneously pushed back with its whole body weight and slammed Nier with its tail, sending him airborne for a moment. Kainé darted to the side and backstepped quickly to protect Nier from both the attackers, but then she noticed Emil grasped her forearm and reached out to Nier as well. The reason for that was clear; the door. She altered her blade's positioning and prepared herself to use all of her strength in a single attack, just as the young magic weapon exclaimed :

_\- Emil Rush Test Version!_

 

 

They were propelled towards the door immediately, Nier and Kainé's forms lagging behind somewhat as the much smaller body of Emil tried to pull them along. Kainé still took advantage of the gained velocity and further bounced herself forward by kicking her feet off of the ground. Her blades flashed and she swung them at full power, sending long flashes of light along the wall and the doors themselves much like she did in the battle against a Shade attacking Nier's village all those years ago. Combined with Emil's previous spells weakening the door and the Shade both, she completely pierced through, chunks of metal and concrete flying around as her companions quickly followed her past the door and into the new room. She cast a quick look back at the two attackers from before; the one who looked like a half-shade was indeed regenerating, but it seemed only a fraction of the speed at which Tyrann could heal her own wounds back when she was fused with him. Clearly, this was some sort of an imperfect joining. The Shade along the wall transformed itself into a large shade of jaws just above the broken set of doors, now audibly wailing and releasing other noises as the duo behind them was apparently confident about walking through the wall scot-free without it stopping them. It seemed either this Shade was not relapsed yet, or it perceived a half-shade and a non-relapsed Gestalt as allies... At least that wouldn't look all that weird to Nier, she thought.

 

_\- Nier, Emil, are you okay?_

_\- Just... a little shaken up. Emil, you said the prototype spells don't make controlling your magic eas..._

_\- I needed to use them. But... yes. It's getting more and more risky. Kainé, are these two tough?_

_\- Don't know about the red-skinned guy. All he did was use that one trick so far. He doesn't recover quite as quickly as I did, but I think he's part shade. But the Shade with the spear is definitely tough. He might be the worst we were up against in the last couple of months, if he has anymore up his sleeve._

 

The room they were in was completely different than any of the ones they visited so far. It had numerous larger screens, tables and a large amount of chairs placed along the sides, leading up to a large stage with a curtain at the end. The curtain seemed to also have a huge drawing on it, including some pointers that seemed to be lined up with words in a language she didn't understand, or at least couldn't read in the light Emil provided. The drawing definitely presented some sort of animal or beast, with large wings and a long tail, but the curtain was parted mildly revealing that there was some additional narrow passage behind the stage.

 

 

'Having more up his sleeve' was a statement the mysterious Shade proved about himself - or itself, in any case - soon enough. With quick motions of his tail, palm, and weapon, the shade was easily sending barrages of the traditional magic orbs, suggesting a lot of power was packed within him. While Kainé and Nier could successfully parry them with their weapons at first, Emil was in more trouble and had to use spells to defend himself. Not only that, but the large Shade took yet another, different stance and charged up his weapon. Black and blue mist mixed around it, with flashes of lighter blue shining through it in a display of some magical property Kainé never saw before. With another quick half-thrust, half-swinging motion the Shade sent a narrow cone of the blue mist and light right at Nier, which coalesced into little icicles that the young swordsman just barely parried, save for one that lodged itself in his armor and apparently only lightly pierced the skin underneath. But the lower side of the swing spread more of that magical energy out and it in turn immediately flash-freezed along the floor right in front of Nier, materializing a bigger chunk of ice that smashed right into his abdomen; if not for the armor, it'd likely both pierce skin and muscle and deal blunt trauma with its sudden appearance, but this time Nier's armor didn't let it penetrate further. Still, the young swordsman fell on one knee, and it was not the end of their trouble. The red-skinned man apparently recovered almost entirely and quickly dashed towards Nier, seeking to finish the job, but Emil reacted just in time.

_\- Sensei's Regrettarage!_

 

With the man's strength being mostly an unknown factor, a rapid barrage of magical bullets that slowed him down and stopped him from having a clear shot at Nier was clearly the right choice. Their troubles would not end, however, as the spear-wielding Shade was preparing to send more orbs their way and more of the mannequin-wielding soldiers gathered in the lobby they just left behind them. While those weren't dangerous before, who knew what they could do if an intelligent Shade that retained self-control could guide them.

 

["What's more, Emil used a lot of magic that strains his control, so both him taking care of the small fry and him countering that Shade's own spells is a stretch. We can't let these two guys come in contact again, either, or we'll have to deal with a hard-to-see enemy in a room that has more cover than the last one. Last but not least, if that Shade engages Nier one on one while I'm occupied in any way, there's no way Nier's winning that kind of a duel against him. Not yet, at least."]

 

She wasted no time. Rushing to Nier's side, she exclaimed.

_\- Emil, stop with this and blast the other one, quick!_

 

Emil quickly stopped with his barrage of spells and immediately interrupted the Shade's attempt at a magic attack with his rays, followed by a quick Halboltua blast that had the Shade reeling backwards. Kainé grabbed both of her swords as tightly as she could and she swung them at the red-skinned half shade, with a loud groan followed by her shouting 'Die, you fucking copycat!' just as her blades dug into his flesh. The satisfying sound of his bones giving way momentarily to metal and starting to break under her swing was interrupted when the man's shade-infested arm was raised forward. A magical circle flashed behind him, clear even in the dim room, and Kainé was far too familiar with the principle not to recognize what was going on. In a motion that felt awkwardly similar to something she once did, she kicked Nier to the side and back and also herself dodged. The man's own spell turned out to be partially nullified by this as shadowy wisps, heat waves and a bit of fire erupted in a short cone from an area around the front of his palm, not dealing a lot of damage to them but causing one of the tables in the room to become lightly charred. Oddly, Nier seemed to have a reaction to getting kicked by Kainé, using the momentum she provided to grab one of the chairs, spin around and toss it at the man right after his spell was over.

 

The blunt trauma combined with the pain from his wounds almost tipped him over, and Kainé didn't waste any time with a quick follow-up - leaning forwards and giving a short dash, she slashed at the man's legs with her blades and hacked them apart, leaving his upper thigh deeply wounded while almost cleaving his calf off. Wish a sharp yell of pain, the man managed to react quickly enough to try and stab her with his blade's rather pointy end, but Kainé's flexible body quickly bent back and sideways as she knee-kicked his arm off its course. Nier took advantage of the opening by following it up with a quick thrust, and both of them quickly jumped back and darted to the sides again when the man tried repeating his spell; the cone of shadows and flames now being significantly shorter and narrower, suggesting there was not a lot of magic available to this person.

 

They came so close to eliminating that target that only now did Kainé notice Emil had to defend himself up close from the large Shade's spear attacks and occasional magic orb, and while she had reasons to believe Emil at full power would've just obliterated the Shade with a few well-placed magical blasts, her friend was no longer at his best after today. She was about to step over there to help out, confident Nier could take care of the red-skinned man now after they dealt so much damage to him, but the whole scene was interrupted by what was going on with the large shade at the door and the approaching mannequin-wardens.

The shade at the former door, transformed into a large set of jaws, detached itself from the wall and floated almost like smoke, tendrils extending towards the Shades animating the mannequin soldiers and pulling them towards itself. Unable or unwilling to let go of their plastic or otherwise fake bodies, the entire almost-human figures were slowly pulled alongside the tendrils, either walking more quickly than before or just getting dragged along the floor. Dim yellow light, dark gray smoke, almost black shade-script, and equally dark ooze mixed together as pieces of cloth were torn apart and almost white, dirty plastic begun to get crushed from the sudden pressure and magic density surrounding it. The shades begun fusing immediately with their bodies just getting in the way; the fake humanlike statues getting crushed and malformed, with some of their limbs or heads peeking out from under the substance and getting attached to the yellow tendrils of the original, screaming Shade almost like extra hands and limbs. Torso pieces floated around through the matter like weak mobile armor as it formed legs from both its own matter and that of the mannequins to support its new, convoluted, malformed body with, almost like a giant insect or spider that had extra limbs. The previously humanlike jaws of the door-shade got even more jagged teeth and developed hooks of shade-stuff along the edges of the mouth, becoming more cruel and monstrous-looking. Shade eyes begun appearing along the form, some still buried in the body itself, some perfectly appearing where the mannequin-faces' eyes should be as the cruel amalgamation seemingly accepted its dual nature. Finally, more of the shade's essence and the plastic stuff was drawn to the middle of the construct, crushed together, then exploded outside, legs, torsos and limbs of some of the mannequins discarded in a violent explosion but followed quickly by a set of magical orbs flying out of the center in chaotic patterns, forcing the spear-wielding Shade to jump up so that they could strike Emil, and also prompting Kainé and Nier to stop with their maneuvers in order to parry the onslaught.

 

A long, fierce roar from the freshly born Shade amalgamation told the group their problems just got worse.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To put things mildly... Things were and will be bad.
> 
> But right now they are not neccessarily bad for writing, so expect more updates soon. 
> 
> I will try to share as much as logically and emotionally able to on one of those updates.


	17. 4d - Clouds Came

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nier, Kainé and Emil are faced with difficult odds, having expended far too much of their energy just exploring the eerie facility. Can they safely get out of yet another troublesome situation?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to wish everyone a nice Easter and happy Easter holidays. Once that period is over and I am done having important family time, the update speed of both this story and Freak Love will increase.

Initially, despite his conviction, he felt uneasy at having met any Replicants in this place.

After all, they had no way of accessing it peacefully, and the fact they could access it meant they had enough power to force their way in. That meant they were a danger. And if they were here, there was a chance they approached this place for the same reason he did.

 

But he had no way to communicate with them. The Affinity Vessel accompanying him didn't speak their language, and they couldn't understand his. So they fought. And at first, he was worried.

Fighting against that woman proved she was strong. Her companions proved they were not completely dead weight to her, either. There were occasionally rumours about particularly dangerous Replicants, and the rumours he heard did occasionally include a mention of a white-haired woman with two heavy, sawlike blades.

But as the battle unveiled, he felt lucky instead. Those dangerous Replicants and their odd construct friend were already weary from their travel so far, and as such, presented a much lesser danger to him. At the same time, they would damage and wear out his companion, and the battle was almost resolved by the appearance of the local wardens whom, while clearly relapsed, evidently preferred battling Replicants to fighting their own kind and even responded occasionally to his attempts at dialogue, and successfully fused into one powerful being, which definitely tilted the battle in his favor.

 

And all of these circumstances made his plan a lot more possible to accomplish.

 

 

Kainé was facing a rather difficult choice moments after the new Shade appeared on the battlefield. The spread of magical orbs had to be defended against, and Emil was in enough trouble as is, so defending him was the natural course of action... Until the huge, malformed shape of the new Shade, along with all of the plastic bits and pieces carried in its large form, charged Nier. Maybe it was doing the same thing, protecting a comrade on the ground, or maybe it moved by instinct... one way or another, Nier would be unable to finish the red-skinned man off, and was in quite the pinch himself. While a large target, it had way too many 'limbs' of all sorts to utilize. It's motions were unpredictable and erratic, while most of Nier's recent training and practice as well as actual combat experience was centered more on defending against various weapons and magical attacks over fights that included a huge opponent swinging with little to no rhyme or reason from several directions at once. As such, for several moments, he appeared to be taking a serious beating.

["... Whom am I even supposed to help in such a situation? N...Nier? Emil?"]

Confusion and doubt were not something Kainé was used to feeling in the middle of a fight. She could just barely recall that last time she felt them in such a situation, she got knocked unconscious and stayed so through Emil blowing up her hometown.

This made her realize what was the right choice.

["He'd save his little sister, but... Emil doesn't have a big sibling anymore. Without me, without us, he's alone. And... if Emil's pushed into a corner, damaged, and wastes too much of his energy we could all..."]

She tossed a momentary longing glance at the struggling Nier. His youthful face scrunched up in expressions of pain and concentration both as he struggled to grasp the speed and pattern of his opponent's moveset and defend himself.

Nothing changed. With weapons alone, they could only do so much, and their weapons weren't even the highest quality possible. Somehow, she could tell. Which is why they needed Emil, and a Grimoire. That's how they did it last time, using magic as well as blades.

And even with constant training, Nier couldn't catch up to the way he was back then. It had to take time, obviously. It'd also take a better teacher than her - a frustrated swordswoman who might as well have been looking for death a couple of months ago, and was constantly distracted by thoughts and feelings of longing both then and now. Emil was powerful, but he certainly couldn't really hope to help  Nier get stronger with sparring and training

It was really the same in the past, but a little worse. He was still going to pick his sister, save his sister, do stuff for his sister. And they were still going to get themselves into situations where they all risked their lives. Like now.

She was already walking over to where Emil was trying to defend himself against the large, somewhat cobra-like Shade. Her lips squeezed together tightly, looking thinner than usual. There was no warning about her attack other than an overexaggerated swing of her leg as she kicked the still-armored Gestalt away from her magic weapon of a friend, not minding the resulting pain in her limb as she quickly followed it up with a spin and bringing both of her blades down on the unbalanced Shade in a joined swing. The force of the blow dented her opponent's armor and seemed to come just barely short of sweeping him off his feet entirely. Recovering as fast as he could, the Shade brandished his weapon and attempted a thrusting attack. Kainé's protective instincts didn't include only Emil; dodging sideways, one of her blades hacked down on the Shade's now exposed palms and pushed his weapon down with a chop from above, the other smashed into the armor on his chest.

More dents in armor. Smoke spilling out. Blood trickling out. She swung both of her weapons down, slightly towards each other, then joined her arms to push the Shade away as she noticed him trying to charge up his own magic weapon and counterattack. With this, she had a good enough view of his weapon to recognize the motion. Placing one of her blades on the ground for extra support, Kainé swung her leg and kicked his arm and the polearm itself, a light chill hitting her leg moments before the magic attack flash-freezed into a large amount of ice crystals to the side of her, completely missing the swordswoman. Her other sword came down right on the Shade's head in a downwards chop more reminiscent of an axe strike than anything, the hit evidently stunning her opponent for a moment.

Four years ago, she was amongst those who reached Shadowlord's castle. She might've no longer hold the sheer resilience she had then, but she had the strength, and as far as skill went she only grew better since that time. When focused, there was no way she was going to lose against a Shade just because he was better armed and more skilled than a run off the mill one, the only problem at the moment being she wasn't fully rested.

Kainé's hands and blades crossed, then came down and spread wider as she hacked the front of the Shade's armor apart at long last. All she needed to do was make sure her hits would count.

 

 

She moved fluidly, spinning into a half-crouch as one of her blades hacked along the Shade's legs and the other properly hit his front, for the first time making its blood spray out rather than trickle. She slammed the ends of both of her blades into the ground in front of her, then used them as purchase to send her opponent stumbling backwards with a kick - despite her opponent's strength and the weight of his armor, the powerful leg-swing actually lifted him off the ground for a split second. With that, she quickly placed both of her legs on the ground. They ached from kicking an armored opponent, but Kainé could not afford to care about pain just yet. With a short and well-measured, but deadly somersault just above the ground, both of her blades slammed themselves down onto the Shade as he was still stumbling backwards, smashing him into the ground and even breaking some of the armor along its legs as its awkward positioning stopped the gestalt from being fully flattened down on the floor. Blood spraying out once again as she made sure to hit the revealed piece of the Shade's body *and* damage his armor further.

The shade struggled to maintain his balance and keep up with her movement. He still had some chance at escaping this position, but if he didn't manage to, he was a complete goner. There was still  plenty of strength reinaining in Kainé's arms and that was all she needed to repeatedly bring her swords down on him and finish him off.

 

Emil's voice resounded somewhere to her side, and she felt the warmth of her own blood spill along her side and back. Force, texture, heat and scent of a reasonably large man took her focus away from  her target and brought her back to an almost battle trance-like state. The realization of being stabbed and then taken off the ground followed, the two of them slamming into a desk with one of the computers at the side of the large chamber. The half-shade's leg was regenerated, just as her own limbs were by Tyrann so many years ago. Her opponent wasted no time in summoning up his magic and blasting her point-blank with the shadows and flames of that odd power he gained through his state. Thankfully, he was still short on the energy needed to produce said effect, perhaps even more so than earlier, otherwise she'd have suffered significant damage. Also luckily for her, he apparently lacked the experience, instinct, or pure sadism to take advantage of his weapon's shape and twist it in her wound, pulling it out cleanly almost right away instead.

 

Maybe he wasn't so bad. Maybe they should let him live afterwards, try to learn why he was helping out Shades. Perhaps he's being deceived or forced.

She heard Emil's voice again, and felt rejuvenated. It was that healing spell of his. Even her legs felt better, and she was ready to continue her fight.

Kainé 's positioning forced her to witness what was going on with Nier once more. He was better off now. He learned how to counter the Shade's physical movement, or more precisely position himself, dodge, and attack back once he minimized the damage. The Shade released its magical orbs in chaotic but almost circle-like patterns, and he had an easy time parrying those as well. She made the right call, although the fact the Shade seemed to be gathering a surplus of energy mildly worried her.

["He can make it. I just need to take down those two. He'll either deal with that Shade amalgamate or at least hold it back until we can help hi..."]

A shape manifested itself in front of the large Shade. It was all red, somewhat dark-looking, and visibly humanoid. The figure appeared to be female, dressed in some sort of brighter half-skirt half-formal outfit that might've once been associated with a job. Brandishing an iron pipe not unlike the Shade she fought against today, it darted towards Nier at an immense speed. Having just finished defending himself from the magic orbs and not expecting this sort of attack at all, the young man was easily struck from above by the slightly taller phantom that seemed all too similar to a human, and all too similar to a spell he gained soon after they joined forces to kill her grandmother's murderer.

Yes, the way the spell worked didn't *fully* operate on the same rules of force and damage a full-blown clone using a weapon would, although it partially did mimic such an effect. But Kainé wasn't really able to make such a logical conclusion at the time. All she saw was the man she tried so long to recover and to protect from having to risk his life like that again, the young boy she promised soon after she recovered him that she'd try to make sure he could relax more in this life, get hit in the head with an iron pipe.

By a Shade she allowed him to fight. With a spell he gained through destroying her grandmother's murderer together with her.

It was a little much. Enough for a single tear to fall out of Kainé's eye, and for her body to tremble before a long, loud sound came out from within, at first groaning, then continuing until her voice broke down and the sound turned to more of a psychotic shriek.

_\- Grrrrroooooooaaaaaahhhhkkhkkhkkkkkkiieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!_

 

 

Unnerved, the half-shade man tried to stab her from up close again, but she wasn't in the mood for that. She removed the distance between them while pushing his arm to the side, then unceremoniously sank her teeth into his neck and ear, biting in until she drew blood and cleanly split his earlobe into two pieces, one of them flopping around barely connected to the rest of his ear and head with thin strands of skin and muscle, bleeding profusely. With a swipe of her leg, she sent the pained man flat on his ass, but not before the same leg gathered up one of his, kicked it up, and brought her sword down in a painful clutch between her lower limb and the blade. A sickening cracking noise could be heard as she broke the bone cleanly, not even sparing a look at him.

_\- I'll fucking murder you! I'll fucking kill you all!_

 

The apparently half-shade man groaning off to the side just triggered her natural counter-attack instinct, or maybe the one that desired silence at that point. A quick swing of her blade dug right up into the front of his face, drawing blood and distorting his features as she broke his nose, some of his teeth, sawed off quite a bit of his lips and skin and slammed his head against the floor. She ignored the polearm-wielding Shade in favor of using her freshly-healed legs in one of her epic leaps, beating a straight-up inhumanly long distance towards the other Shade in a single lunge followed by a proper jump and slamming both of her hands into the large thing from above. The mannequin bodyparts got hacked up and mangled, and still clung to her blades as she drew these back and tossed them aside, but they did serve as slight mitigation of damage she dealt. Furthermore, as usual, a fusion of several Shades had impressive regenerative capabilities. The extra limbs of both shade-stuff and polymer slammed up against her, along with some mannequin heads, but she ignored it in favor of damaging the creature as much as she could. Hacking, chopping, slashing, it didn't matter as long as she saw blood splash around and the odd amalgamation of shade essence and fake bodies underneath her tremble in pain.

 

As is often the case, furious attack had its benefits as far as dealing damage went, but it was a little bit blinding to what was going on around you. The Shade had more methods of attack than melee combat, and she only broke a single lower limb on a half-shade that could recover fairly quickly, not to mention she completely ignored her original target. Being caught flat-footed by a sudden strike should really come to no surprise to Kainé, nor should an effective counter from the shade amalgamate she was trying so hard to butcher, but she was actively trying to bury her feelings in rage and slaughter and as such, thoughts of dodging attacks that didn't come directly from the creature she was trying to murder were forgotten.

 

Suffice to say, Nier wasn't the only one who used a chair from the large chamber they were in in that fight. It hit her right in the back, her blades spreading and unable to block the incoming counter as the large Shade's body twisted itself and pulsated, then released a stream of magical orbs, focused enough that almost all were hitting Kainé's body and pushed her off her supposed prey. She struggled to quickly scramble back to her feet and defend herself, but the extra attack of the Shade followed up.

This time, a completely different shape was summoned. This one bore clothes and mild body armor that somewhat resembled the ruined 'clothing' of the mannequin guards. They also had a weapon with metallic tubes, but different, suggesting it fired off different type of ammunition; furthermore the barrel of it was adorned with a somewhat glaive or swordlike blade, which Kainé reasoned she was about to be cut with.

That was okay. She could withstand that much no matter how much the attack resembled the actual weapon. When the shape darted towards her in an effort to strike in melee, she knew that much and tried to recompose herself.

Only to be kicked right out of the way and for the shape to miss her and the leg of the person who kicked her by a narrow margin.

 

Nier. He seemed okay... Emil's magic again? Did she underestimate them both? Of course, Nier knew how that spell worked, he used it himself through Weiss. It only made sense. She calmed down, tried to focus. A quick glance around proved that the red-skinned man was aiming another chair at the two of them, and that his leg's bones were back in proper configuration, likely recovering on the spot. But the shade with the cobra-like hood was nowhere to be found.

She tossed a long glance towards the stage with a curtain. There he was, walking at a brisk pace towards... Where the Grimoire was probably located.

Of course, if Emil healed Nier, he couldn't have tried to stop him, and healing Nier was obviously a priority even if it meant coming close to losing the Grimoire.

She deflected the throw from the half-shade and tossed a sideway-glance at Nier, Emil, and the huge shade. She dealt significant damage... Could she trust them to finish the job? She noticed the cobra-like Shade had his weapon at his side, and was charging up some sort of magic through it. Just as she was about to use her legs to shorten the distance to one of her opponents, he came close to moving out of sight completely... but behind, he left something umistakable.

A huge slab of ice materialized along the ground right along the path he took, just behind the partially uncovered curtain.

Likely to block the path.  He was no longer a target worth pursuing; she'd have to hack through magical ice and risk both Emil and Nier's safety.

But if they didn't hurry it up, they'd lose the race to get that grimoire for themselves, and this whole trip would be close to meaningless.

 

 

 

 

 

 

He was safe.

It was going to be easy. All he had to do was convince the likely partially shocked Grimoire, in its likely to be incomplete memory, to follow his instructions this one time, and later on convince him his way of thinking was correct with the Grimoire still not operating on full mental capacity.

That's all he needed to stand tall enough in the world to be able to spread his point of view along all of what remained of it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kainé took a deep breath in as she tossed a glance between the two remaining opponents. The large Shade's body seemed somewhat smaller now, partially because her and to a lesser extent Nier's attacks rendered some of the mannequin-based parts stuck in the shape damaged enough to be virtually useless, and partially because it clearly needed some time to regenerate. The red-skinned apparent half-shade man did shift his weight onto the leg she managed to break before, as if testing whether or not it he could already be moving and using it. He didn't seem used to his ability to regenerate yet, nor really know its limits... Kainé reasoned he likely didn't gain this ability until recently, and from the look of pain on his face his bones were not yet recovered either.

There was no right strategy here. Duels against the huge shade were risky because of its chaotic attack patterns, magic abilities, and regeneration. While either of the two could likely take the red-skinned man on one on one, this meant lack of support against the large shade fusion. Emil was likely running pretty short on magical power, further limited by how much his spells must've destabilized what he had left by this point to quite a degree.

 

The only proper way to fight in that case was a genuine team fight of two versus two. She couldn't imagine her and Nier wouldn't have better cooperation than an insane Shade fusion and a half-shade speaking a different language entirely, unless the shade part of him had managed to convince or dominate the mannequin-shade amalgamate into proper teamplay. That way, they'd be able to protect Emil as well.

The white-haired swordswoman wasted no time in dashing over to where the half-shade man was standing, swinging her blades simultaneously. With one of them parried, she angled the other's trajectory enough to slice her opponent right across the palm, almost causing him to drop his sword. Her legs quickly followed with a powerful kick to the gut and a stomp right on the knee in his still not fully recovered leg, causing  a scream to erupt from his lips at the excessive amounts of pain. Kainé rushed her next move, swiping the same leg she used to kick him against his other foot, forcing him to put more weight onto the broken limb and dropping one of her swords to grab his body.

_\- Nier!_

 

Without any further ado and with the man not being sure enough on his feet to resist the attack at all, Kainé had an easy time tossing him well over halfway towards her companion. A strong, half-spinning uppercut was Nier's way to discourage the large Shade's limbs from sudden attack as he dashed towards the prone target. Emil actually got there first, quickly stabbing the now hard-to-miss half shade with his spear, which left him immobilized for the short time Nier needed to slash him across the chest from above, withdraw his blade, and thrust it right under his opponent's ribs. Kainé was already charging towards the group and the huge Shade behind them, but she didn't waste the opportunity to slam her sword into the man's previously better-off leg, the satisfying crunch of bone and light splash of blood telling her he was once more going to stay on the ground for several moments longer. The white-haired woman followed it up with a leap and a powerful slashing motion from below with her other arm, repelling and mangling one of the amalgamation's more plastic-based limbs, following the motion with a quick spin that had her using both blades to chop along the mannequin heads, partially covered with the shade essence as the yellowish eyes seemed to provide the large beast with additional tactile input. The creature tried to take advantage of the brave motion but, as expected, Nier was there to protect her from a swing to her side, barely withstanding the force of it with a block and getting pushed right up against Kainé.

 

They were both feeling colder than the situation would suggest. They lost quite a bit of blood, and the sweat over their bodies was as much from stress and worry as it was from exertion. Kainé knew they couldn't keep it up forever and unlike them all three of their opponents possessed the ability to recover from injuries more quickly; whether they managed to deal with the problem here and follow the large shade before he obtained the Grimoire or in the case he'd return with it in his possession, the spear-wielding cobralike Shade in a mask would be back to almost full health and energy.

 

Kainé swung both her blades from above in a chop that only barely lodged them within the Shade, then pulled them out with a quick yank. Using one of the mannequin torsos and heads floating from within the mass of shadows, Kainé once more took advantage of her astonishing leaping power to propel herself towards the half-shade laying on the ground, ready to chop him up into little pieces at last. However, this time, Nier needed to block and parry a number of chopping and sweeping motion from the beast's many limbs and couldn't defend her except for a warning.

_\- Kainé, behind you!_

 

Surely enough, the figure of a woman bearing an iron pipe, created entirely from magical energy, was charging at her with speed even more immense than her own this time. With a hiss, Kainé only barely managed to dash sideways quickly and drastically enough to have the spectre pass her without hitting her. The half-shade man groaned as his legs and body seemingly started to recover enough for him to stand up, and he reached out to try his personalized blast of magical energy against Emil... But this time, barely anything other than a wheeze came out. Emil tried stabbing the taller form of the man, but he reacted just in time with the blade of Emil's spear getting lodged inbetween the spikes at the side of the man's short sword. Emil reacted just in time by pulling his weapon to the side and quickly releasing a ray of energy into the man's abdomen, where the wound from Nier's slashing and stabbing was still recovering.

The giant Shade released a whole wave of magical orbs spiralling out of its form and quickly charged over Nier, pushing him back then slamming him away to the side, and focused immediately on Kainé as the main jaw finally came into play by trying to bite her. Kainé managed to block that attack with her blades, then slowly saw off the Shade's essence by dragging her blades through the main head, but evidently 'main' didn't mean much anymore in the fused form as a multitude of limbs both plastic and shadowy crashed against Kainé's body and smacked her around for several moments. Nier managed to stab the creature's mass from its flank once he regained his balance, but it wasn't the end of its attack. This time, the phantom of the odd-looking soldier with a blade strapped on to the barrel of his weapon appeared at Kainé's side rather than between her and the shade, quickly cutting her and traveling on an arc towards Nier, who didn't manage to dodge in time either.

_\- S-shit, it can use that version as well!_

 

Most of Weiss' spells could be utilized in a small number of ways, so it wasn't surprising that a creature using one of them could learn the other. However, receiving more damage definitely wasn't making their situation any better. Kainé grasped her left sword more tightly, slashing from one side to the other and back before doing an uppercut with her right blade during a spin much like Nier did beforehand. Following that motion, she immediately dashed towards Emil, confident that the large Shade must've ran out of energy to weave spells for at least several moments and interrupting the much taller exotic-looking half-shade from engaging him up close further. With a quick elbow to the chin she staggered him for a moment, hacking with her blade against his somewhat clumsier block hard enough to throw him off balance even more and cause his and her swords to leave tiny cuts across his chest. Her momentum only partially reduced, she grabbed Emil on her way and pulled him further away from the impaired half-shade just as Nier followed suit with her motions, starting his own run with a cut to the large shade's legs to reduce its mobility a bit as he forced it to regenerate the bodypart. Nier engaged the half-shade man in a quick, short exchange of blows where he made sure he could only be parried with the non-spiky side of the other man's blade, following it with a quick slash close to the shape of the letter 'A' where his blade started off at the man's hip, arched up towards his throat and then quickly came down to impair the other arm by slicing up its muscles a little. Nier wasted no time with quickly following it up with a stab, although the man could by that point tilt himself back and to the side enough to not be impaled completely no matter how much force Nier could muster in his thrust. Emil quickly stepped out of Kainé's grasp once she slowed down further and stopped properly, delaying the huge Shade ascending towards their white-haired male comrade with a bolt of energy.

 

With just a minor setback from the Dark Phantasm-lookalike used by the Shade, they were quickly getting the upper hand... But when the huge curtain at the stage to their side was dramatically pushed  away, with a tall figure walking back into their field of view, Kainé realized it was all for naught.

The Shade was too fast in obtaining its objective. That, or despite all the training and fighting they did up until now, they were just too slow.

 

A darkly colored and adorned Grimoire was floating in the air right by the odd Shade's side. And with the Shade itself exuding confidence as he strolled back through the peeled aside curtains, ready to re-engage them in a proper fight.  Thing was, the same could not be said about them. While the man who appeared to be a half-shade was heavily damaged, and kept having trouble with either one leg or the other due to their attacks being aimed at them, he still hasn't suffered enough for his recovering ability to just let him die. It was clear he wasn't quite at the level Kainé was back when she was bound to Tyrann, although whether that was due to Tyrann having more experience binding with people or for another reason entirely was hard to say. The situation was a little less favourable with the odd  Shade amalgamation still sticking to a mangled mixture of mannequin bodies; while they evidently kept dealing enough damage for some of it to stick, it was hard to say just how much they affected him, or what would happen if they only destroyed one component and not the other - even more so because the more easily destructible component was the mannequin one.

 

All in all, they were worse off than their opponents, and that would be so even if the returning Gestalt didn't have a Grimoire by its side. The book bobbed back and forth in the air several times, as if readjusting itself. Kainé tried to turn the tide of the fight as quickly as possible by dashing towards the half-shade and preparing a mighty swing to finish him off, but the book reacted immediately and channeled its magic together with the shade's own. The spell was all too familiar to Kainé, as she saw Nier and Weiss perform it many times even during the first part of their journey together; A huge palm with visible talons made of black and red wispy energy, larger than a fist of any man imaginable.  

The Dark Hand spell packed quite a punch, with only Kainé's tremendous leg strength stopping her from being tossed around like a ragdoll. She was still shoved away along the ground by a fair distance, about half again as far as she was tall, with one of her legs getting lifted off the ground before she managed to stomp it back down and start regaining her balance.

 

_\- Ah. I presume the presence and existence of those... 'vessels' is unpleasant and unwanted in your vision,_ _ *#!#*# ? _

Kainé's head tilted. The book's voice and manner of speech felt... Foreign. As if it learned to speak their language less perfectly, or just finished learning more recently, compared to Weiss.  She felt like she almost recognized the shadespeak word it produced to refer to the cobra-like Shade, but it didn't matter. What mattered is that the book was now in the hands of the enemy, and that it twirled around in the air after making that statement and listening to the response.

_\- While it does feel like you are somehow... special, feminine vessel, my new partner and mentor Vepar deems every single one of you too dangerous to be allowed to live anymore._

 

 

That Shadespeak word must've meant something akin to what the Grimoire, which sounded like a foreign man, called him just now. That, or it was some alternative pronunciation of that name he was just called.

_\- So this is how it is for you books, huh? You'll pair up with whomever first finds you?_

_\- Something about your conviction displeases me. Perish, vessel._

 

 

After the previous display, Kainé was well-prepared for another attack that could be familiar to her. When a piercing projectile of dark magic burst forth suddenly from the motion of both the Shade's hand and the grimoire itself, it felt like Kainé's body had just enough muscle memory of some event or another with that spell to dodge in time; jumping back and sideways, then turning to the side and again backstepping for the Dark Lance to miss her entirely by a matter of inches. She blinked; it felt all too familiar, and her body seemed to prepared to avoid being pierced through, even though she had no way of knowing this Grimoire would use that spell in particular, or could use it in the first place. The shade would probably also make a surprised face if it could, and if its features weren't obstructed by a mask.

 

 

That and if Nier wasn't already upon him.

_\- Vessels, huh... If all you see us as is vessels for your creators, then maybe it's better we didn't get to you first._

Kainé's eyes opened wider as Nier tumbled forward and quickly cut across the Shade's front, where she peeled off the layers of armor, with his blade.

_\- Nier, you dumbass! You could barely keep up with him before he got that shitty book, how the fuck do you figure you're going to fare NOW!?_

_\- If none of us can take him on, what we need to do is stall! And at least I know what his spells can do better than anyone! Destroy the other two, quick!_

 

There was some logic and soundness to what Nier claimed, but it was clear he was doing it for other reasons entirely. Maybe being called a 'vessel' after trying so hard to gain what might pass for a Weiss substitute was really hurtful, maybe he was concerned over her... But it still felt like suicide for him to be the one to battle the Shade.

Regrettably, she didn't have the comfort of choosing how to intervene. The huge Shade amalgamation was trying to smash Emil around while charging towards her and Nier, and her body's reflexes, once more, propelled her forwards to the rescue of the boy-turned-magic weapon, a powerful slash with both swords from below also packing enough blunt force to force a pale imitation of what she just went through with the Dark Hand upon the less-and-less mannequin bound shade fusion.

 

 

Nier knew he had to stay on his toes and keep his focus on the apparent leader of whatever unholy alliance a grimoire, a Shade, and a half-shade could make. Indeed, he just barely managed to parry a spear thrust to the side before the magically adept Shade and his new book fired another spell he was accustomed to at him; the rapidly incoming missiles of Dark Blast were not easy to avoid, but at least Nier could dodge by knowing the general pattern of them.  For several moments, Nier was indeed in pure defence mode; just jumping, backstepping and rolling around in an effort to focus the Shade's attention on him. When the Shade turned around to try and fire a spell at his companions, however, Nier took the bait; immediately sliding his blade through the air in a wild arc that the Shade managed to partially mitigate merely by leaning forward. Spinning around and drawing his hand back to build extra momentum, he unleashed another powerful thrust at the much smaller swordsman; Nier supported the back of his blade with his forearm and tilted his body to redirect the force of the thrust to the side, and while he was pushed back and had to take one step away from the monster to retain his balance, it didn't seem like the attack succeeded. Nier, however, was well aware what the follow-up would be as a dark hand emerged from underneath the Grimoire and attempted to slam itself into him, only for the young swordsman to quickly dodge sideways and finally connect with a horizontal slash that caused the shade apparently called 'Vepar' to release a hissing sound.

Playtime was evidently over, as was testing the magic of the book on his opponents. The Shade might've either become aware something wasn't working out or annoyed that the spells were not as effective as he expected them to be. Relying once more on his own magic, he quickly formed magical orbs on the ends of his polearm while his hand worked with quick motions to fire more to the side, unleashing a chaotic patter upon Nier... but one he already faced before on that day when fighting the Shade. The quick follow-up of Dark Blast however finally caught the young swordsman relatively off guard and dealt additional damage, which was not a luxury Nier could take at this point.

 

 

Falling back and away from the large Shade, Nier underestimated just how far the being would go in an attempt to defeat him quickly. A quick Dark Lance, similar to the one he tossed at Kainé, forced him to slide off to one side. But the Shade was immediately upon him with a lunging thrust, while his Grimoire's Dark Hand flew above the ground to cut off the possibility of dodging to the other side. Nier managed to just barely block the strike only for the freshly-made grimoire owner to kick him in the abdomen from up close, quickly release three magic orbs from the tip of his weapon, two of which Nier immediately parried only for two more quick follow-ups from the palm of the Shade's hand. The entire combo was finished with a short burst of Dark Blast meant to throw Nier off balance.

 

While Nier was aware of what this was the setup for, that didn't mean he had the experience to choose the absolutely best way to deal with it. When Vepar pushed forward with his own weapon's elementally charged attack, dark whisps of energy mixing with a cold mist that immediately flash-freezed into ice crystals during the thrust, Nier went for a trade rather than attempt to stall the inevitable hit. Charging his own attack up, the often told and re-enacted scene of two combatants seeming to bet the fight on a single final exchange seemed to play out...

 

... But Nier's weapon was not up to par with his opponents. It didn't hold enough power, it wasn't upgraded enough, it had inferior reach; a minor flaming cut on his opponent was answered with Nier's shoulder getting pierced with a spear and the side of his neck and face instead feeling frostbitten and cut apart with ice crystals. The young swordsman's blood slowly spilled onto the floor as, in desperation, he swung his sword at the grimoire itself; futilely as the book merely slid away, and its owner pressed his free arm almost right up against Nier's body in preparation for another magical release.

 

Nier's eyes darted to the side to see what was going on with Kainé, hoping that even if he fails, her and Emil would be able to tackle their opponent before he passed out or died on the spot. They did seem to be achieving significant progress with the shade amalgamation, but the half-shade was once again sneaking up on Kainé in an effort to stab her from behind. Nier tried to raise his voice, to warn her, but all that came up was a gurgling noise as something along the way was flooded with his own blood.

 

He wasn't just going to collapse and let things happen under such circumstances, however. With a sharp motion, Nier took a step back and tore the tip of the ranseur-like weapon from his flesh, before kicking Vepar's arm up and making him miss entirely. With his remaining strength, he lunged forward thrusting his blade through the Shade's exposed body, then followed up with another sharp motion as he attempted to tear through it. Both attacks hit, but not as devastatingly as they should.

Nier realized he lost depth perception, which likely meant only one of his eyes was working at the moment. His desperate last resort attack was just another semi-success on a long list of those against an opponent clearly superior to him in most aspects.

He tossed another glance to see what happened to Kainé, a reflex stronger than he could help.

 

 

 

 

The swordswoman managed to calm down enough to realize the half-shade was not interfering in the fight for too long, and figure out his intentions. A quick spinning chop resulted in the half-shade receiving the damage he hoped to dish out, but when Kainé followed up with another strike, the man used the side of his weapon to interfere. Something about its very nature and construction allowed it to stop her blade in its tracks and seemingly try to cut, scratch, or merely fully catch it with the spiky side. Her sword was locked in a struggle for a moment as seemingly both Kainé and the man expected something completely different to happen; she evidently was sure she should be overpowering him by now, he probably was hoping for a far more dramatic result from his successful parry.

 

Neither expected what actually happened before Kainé's saw-like sword and the odd weapon could interact further.

_\- Sensei's Regrettarage!_

The already familiar missiles begun firing at the man's back, giving Kainé a moment to free her blade. However, the attack was followed up while it still lasted.

_\- Emil Rush, Test Version!_

 

 

With a sudden burst of speed, Emil re-aimed his spell and started wildly flying around the shade Nier was engaged with, all the while bombarding him with the spell. Being bombarded from all sides, the cobra-like armored Gestalt had no way to defend himself except take the full brunt of the attack, although the Shade and the Grimoire seemed to desperately be struggling to counter the magic weapon's attack with some form of magic as well.

 

For a moment, Kainé tried to process how was Emil still using such spells. At the last moment, she dodged the attack of the shade-amalgamate and distanced herself from him rather than counter, though she couldn't make sense out of why her body moved that way.

Nier's grasp on suddenly understanding Emil's intention was something he was more aware of. The icy attack might've not been pleasant, but it actually shook him awake, almost refreshed him and when his body just mildly recovered and warmed up, pain and adrenaline kept him going. Another lunging thrust, this time not meant at all to damage; no, Nier was pushing the Shade away to a specific direction. Thanks to Emil's constant onslaught, it succeeded; Nier followed it up quickly by stabbing his sword into the ground and using it almost like a staff, pushing himself off the ground and kicking Vepar further away. With this, his body refused to do anything to stop itself from falling heavily onto the ground, so little of Nier's strength left that even moving was taxing.

 

The Grimoire, the serpentine masked Shade, the half-shade man, and the large Shade amalgamation were close enough for Emil's spell to strike with full force.

\- _Prototype spell : Biohazard._

 

The spell was already familiar to both Kainé and Nier. Red energy formed into crescent shapes that fused with one another into a symbol that covered most of the spell's area of effect. Well-aimed and with a pulling effect thrown into it, the spell did, however, show a new quality to it they did not notice the last time. The mannequin-attached Shade wasn't being pulled evenly into the fray; the shade part was the only one that felt the pull, with it not being strong enough yet to detach the odd amalgamate creature.

 

Thanks to the good positioning and Nier's previous attack pushing the shade called Vepar right into the area of effect. It shifted to its more midnight sky-like coloration before flaring out with electric discharges and star-like bursts and eruptions throughout the inside of the affected area.

 

 

The spell's effects eventually cleared, both the smoke and the starlike flares. Kainé could only grit her teeth momentarily at the results. There was damage, and the shades as well as the half-shade man seemed to have trouble moving... But the spell didn't manage to properly finsh off any of them. Best case scenario, that meant they would eventually regenerate and if they were not quick, it could turn into a three versus two very quickly.

 

Worst case scenario, they weren't damaged enough and they'd be outnumbered almost from the get go, given Nier's state.

 

 

A weird sound came from Emil. It was hard to say if he emitted it out of his own violition or if it was some sort of reflex, or related to his state as a magic weapon.

 

_\- This is bad... I managed to calculate my energy and its instability fine, but after this attack... Any spell at all will cause me to go out of control._

_\- You mean that explosion can..._ \- Kainé asked in disbelief.

_\- I'm afraid so._

 

... Kainé thought the  worst scenario just changed to a three  on one.

 

 _\- You two should leave._ \- Emil suggested, his tone barely having any uncertainity in it at all. - _Once you've escaped to a safer distance, I'll let the explosion occur. Be deployed. Whatever. Hopefully it will take out these  guys as well, or bury them here._

_\- There's no way I am letting you kill yourself over these  fucking scumbags, Emil! You've hurt them enough, I have a shot at taking them all out. You take Nier and leave._

_\- They'll kill you as you are now, Kain_ _é_ _. Even if I am buried in here, as long as I can get my head out there is a chance I could rebuild my body and..._

_\- I am not leaving you behind again!_

 

 

Nier was about to speak up, but then they shifted their gaze  to finally pay attention to the shades themselves. There was a loud tirade of pained-sounding Shade-speak moments before that prompted them to do that, but it wasn't either of the actual Shades releasing it. Rather, it seemed to be caused by some sort of resonance between the one called Vepar and the half-shade red-skinned man. The shade essence covering some of the man's body was swirling out of his form and into Vepar, with the man's battered body being left on the ground with no Shade power to let it recover.

 

It was difficult to guess just how the man achieved his current state or how his supposed companion was doing what he was, but the cruelty of the act was clear; without the self-regeneration ability the red-skinned man would die in mere moments.

 _\- ... Killing... Your comrade? Just what are you bastards doing..._ \- Nier asked with an odd, wheezing sound coursing through his speech and breathing.

 

["We have to get him out of here or he will end up crippled... Or worse. And we need to do it as fast as possible."]

 

More Shadespeak was followed by the Grimoire explaining the action.

_\- This man's power was granted to him by temporarily splitting Vepar's faithless previous ally. Said ally's full life force will now better save to rejuvenate us. They've outlived their usefulness._

 

It was hard to tell what the Grimoire meant by 'them'. Possibly it related both to the man on the ground and the Shade that was apparently artificially bound with both it and the gestalt called Vepar. However, when Vepar reached down to take the half-serrated blade at his feet, then immediately stabbing both his polearm and the sword into the plastic-shade amalgamate still laying on the ground trying to recover. The Grimoire readily followed up the attack with quick bashes from the Dark Hand, hovering over the creature until it released a small, star-like shape that ended up absorbed into the book, just as the shade itself begun to dissipate.

 

 

Vepar's own wounds seemed to immediately seal up, and he appeared to recover to his full fighting capability after effectively murdering his companion and the Shade that randomly tried to help them. This spelled bad news; while alone, he was the strongest of the three, and evidently some sort of dangerous individual. A calculated decision to destroy its own companions was definitely rare amongst Shades.

 

As was ownership of a grimoire that had access to spells they should've learned a little bit about by now.

 

Surely enough, the cobra-like shade quickly gathered magic energy together with his Grimoire and released it in a spell previously used by the large shade amalgamate - Dark Phantasm. Turchesi did mention the awakened Grimoires might need to recover some of their magic, though not to the extent Weiss originally did, and it would make sense for a Shade in its immediate vicinity to somehow connect with whatever passed for a Sealed Verse counterpart in this particular book and, in turn, help it recover its magic through re-absorbing it.

It was the shape summoned with the spell that didn't seem to make sense and come as a surprise. It darted out from within the sudden burst of magical energy, ready to slice them all apart. Curiously, however, rather than any other shape...

... The previously half-shade man laying down on the floor and bleeding out to death could see, with the last light of his eyes and consciousness, a copy of his own form and weapon emerge when shaped by the spell.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kainé was the closest to their enemy, and she had no way or time to react to the attack. It didn't charge straight at her in a line, rather it materialized to the side and seemed to move much faster than normally, almost blinking through air or teleporting. This likely meant their enemies used the variant of the spell that could target a whole group of enemies... which was really bad news for Nier.

The attack that pierced into Kainé didn't feel exactly like getting stabbed with a serrated dagger or short sword, reminding her of the magical nature of the attack, but *how* she was hurt didn't matter - all that mattered is she wasn't going to be able to endlessly take this sort of punishment, and Nier likely was far closer to his own limit than she was.

She tried turning around, ready to toss herself under the strike of the phantasm, but, surprisingly, Emil beat her to it. Shoving the lower right of his four arms into the way of the incoming attack, the boy-turned-magic weapon managed to actually disrupt the spell partially. A weird discharge of dark energy flew through his arm, and it actually seemed to fall down against his side, as if numbed, for a moment before he raised it again. There was no time to check for any serious damage, because the spell continued its 'charge' and immediately blinked halfway to the other side of Emil's body, stabbing him in turn.

Neither Nier or Emil had any business being in this fight anymore. Kainé knew she had to pull the enemy away from them, and then do her best to keep battering at him harder than he could hit back; the latter venture being practically hopeless at this point, though it's not like she actually minded fighting towards a hopeless endeavour.   She dashed towards Vepar, successfully swinging her sword at him once before he dodged the next strike. He thrust his polearm at her, but she managed to tilt her body to the side just in time, his thrust missing by fractions of an inch. Kainé continued trying to attack, swinging both swords at him from the sides after taking a quick step forward, but his own motions were a clear counter; he tried to use the serrated short sword to attack her own blade in some manner, perhaps catch or immobilize it while pushing it down, and on the other side, a suddenly manifested Dark Hand simply battered her own saw-like blade to the side. Kainé surprised herself by once more being a split second faster than her opponent, drawing the blade his new sword was reaching for back and using it as a support to push the rest of her body forwards and send him a couple steps away with a strong kick. Of course, strategically, this didn't give her any advantage because his spear would quickly turn the situation around with its greater reach, but...

 

... Two shapes quickly emerged on her sides, ready to follow up on her attempt.

["They're still fighting? Even now?"]

Emil dashed further forward and quickly stabbed, using his spear, at the much taller Shade from below, at an angle where the odd, serrated weapon couldn't help him parry. Nier approached at the side where both the spear and the grimoire was. Without any concern for Weiss' counterpart present in him anymore, he swung his sword right at the book freshly after it was done casting a spell, smacking it through the air like a toy. Following through with the momentum, he altered his sword's course and quickly followed up with another slash that not only dealt damage, but kept Vepar off balance.

 

 

Kainé couldn't lose this chance. She wasn't distracted even when, with the corner of her eye, she saw a new source of illumination and a couple of shapes down the corridor, moving. She chopped with both swords from above, having to keep the swing narrow to avoid hitting her friends.

["Of course they are. It's not like they would just... leave me by myself."]

The twin strikes hit, and Kainé once again raised her leg to kick Vepar away, only this time the saw-like blades were indeed sawing through his form as a result of the sudden push. With one blade freed, she smacked the recomposing and hastily approaching grimoire down to the ground, prompting a terrifying hiss from Vepar that changed into a familiar shade-speech expression that was likely a communication of the pure sensation of pain or anguish. Kainé's sword met with his form again, followed by another quick swing from the other. Despite her tiredness, her blades didn't feel heavy anymore; one hack and slash followed the other at a frenzied pace, 'blood' spilling left and right as she mercilessly attempted to waste away every single piece of life force the apparently traitorous Shade recovered from draining the shade essence from that mysterious, red-skinned man - one whose mystery they'd likely would no longer be able to learn, but one whose face was for some reason ingrained within the Dark Phantasm spell him and his grimoire used.

Another weird sound left the Shade's form. Kainé hoped that one meant disbelief that he was getting punished so hard for being caught off guard just once by two heavily battered young men - if Emil still qualified for being called that, that is. Perhaps it was disbelief at something else, however.

 

 

Surrounding them and cutting the Shade's path off from Emil and Nier, spear-wielding, robe-wearing, masked figures appeared, approached, and immediately positioned themselves, firmly standing on Kainé's and her friends own side.

The style of clothes, the fact they work rather characteristic masks, and their immediate choice of allegiance pointed without a doubt to them being part of the military forces of Façade.

The men shouted something in their hard-to-understand language, prompting the grimoire to float back up from the ground, its form seeming to shudder as the intellect inside as well as the shape outside tried to poise itself.

_\- The language of these people is hard to decipher... It seems to have evolved differently from the old languages compared to moist vessel societies._

 

 

The Shade responded in its own indecipherable speech, with one of the Masked People stepping forward. The man was dressed differently from the others, and his 'mask' was way different, too. Half of it appeared more like a shell or a slightly uncomfortable helmet that covered both the back and front of his head on that side. To even out its weight, he wore a single shoulderpad not dissimilar to Kainé's own on his other shoulder; the second side of the mask was more lightly constructed and revealed some of his face. The part attached to his cheek and the side of his head consisted of an outline from which down-turned plates extended to cover his skin. On the opposite side, longer spikes curved and extended upwards, a total of four of them... They seemed to resemble the legs of some sort of insect or arthropod in design.

 

The man bore different arms than those of his comrades as well. Armed with a short-looking blade at his side and a trident with a heavy, ornate head, Kainé couldn't shake off the feeling that both of these weapons were actually familiar-looking. The appearance of the unique-masked local along with other backup seemed to give Vepar a momentary pause. Seconds after, the Shade did attempt to cash in on the advantage he had moments earlier against the adventuring trio, sprinkling magic orbs and his grimoire's Dark Blast on everyone in range while dashing towards Nier, the one in the most sorry state.

Both Kainé and the masked man anticipated that, however, with the swordswoman quickly side-stepping towards the Shade and stopping him in his tracks with a heavy chopping hit, followed by a quick double-slash with both of her swords. The trident-wielding Façade resident followed suit in the motions of their opponent, first striking almost in tandem with Kainé, aiming for where a normal person would have ankles on the tall shade, then taking full advantage of the imbalance Kainé's strikes have caused. The trident pushed forward with tremendous force in a lunging stab, followed by several quicker, piercing thrusts and finished with a final longer lunge, aimed with the opposite tip of the man's weapon being raised practically level with his head. The remnants of Vepar's armor, already in a sorry state from Kainé's constant bashing, hacking, and slashing, were completely peeled off or decimated during the attack. Unlike Nier's weapon as well as her own, the trident seemed to easily overcome both the armor and the shade's natural resistance and fast healing ability, to the point Vepar seemed both far less sure of continued fighting and actually almost winded from taking it head on.

 

The Shade actually tossed its arm out and physically grabbed its new Grimoire to make sure it wouldn't be lost. A quick Dark Hand tried slamming itself into the Façade-born trident-wielder, but only succeeded in having him dodge back and to the side. Vepar didn't waste that opportunity however, jumping back into a narrower corridor while charging the magic energy within his weapon all the while, only to release it and flash-freeze said energy into a crystal of ice large enough to block the passage temporarily. They could tell the shade was in retreat based on sound and that strategy alone, but the Grimoire saw fit to toss one final warning to them.

_\- If you get in our way next time, you shall no longer have any luck or chance. None of you. Those who won't believe and convert will be left trembling in fear, as it was meant to be._

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Shade's pace was as quick as the damage to his form would allow. Vepar cursed the fact he was not only deprived of armor, but stuck in a desert no less, with little cover against the sun - which his people so readily cast away when they underwent the Gestaltization process, him included. Sun was damaging to him and his only other method of shielding himself was limited. He quickly grabbed the scraps of military clothing, plastic and metal he could find along the way, using his weapon's magic power to freeze them together along his body with a layer of hoarfrost and ice that provided additional cover from the sun - but even such supernatural-seeming ice would melt quickly if he was unlucky. He couldn't afford to stay, however, not with nothing but a temporary barrier of ice separating him from those odd Replicants, magically-inclined being with them, and the forces of Façade.

Once they finally came out into the sun, he tried to move quickly, and in a direction less likely to draw any more attention. This was somewhat interrupted by his new Grimoire uttering a statement rather flatly :

_\- That one was no common vessel._

Vepar paused for a moment, as if wondering whether the grimoire was only trying to praise their enemies for their competence and strenght, or if there was something else to it.

_\- That's why I decided to withdraw. The war-centered member of Façade's Gathering of Moguls himself moving there is rather surprising. The masked people already had a reputation amongst the Gestalts, but he took it even further._

_\- '...Himself'. You mean the masked man. I didn't. I meant the sword wielding woman._

_\- She was indeed powerful. There are some rumours of a half-naked female Replicant wielding twin saw-like swords having been involved in several important defeats for the Gestalts, as well as regularly hunting and engaging relapsed and unrelapsed people alike. If that's the same person it's no wonder we've had trouble._

_\- It's hard to say who would win under different circumstances, but power isn't exactly what I meant, either. She *is* different._

_\- Different how?_

_\- Different. More complete. Not like a Replicant. For that matter, the four armed skeleton with them wasn't like anything I was aware of up until that point, but some of their very essence was rather similar._

_\- Anything you could compare it to if they are not Replicants, or unique for a vessel?_

_\- It's been... too long. And not all of my memory is in a perfect state. Maybe it's one of the highest classes of androids... But there was similarity to the man you brought bound together with your companion, too. It is hard to say more, we *were* in the heat of battle._

 

Vepar was torn between just dismissing these concerns and considering them, but the Grimoire wasn't done in terms of talkativeness.

_\- Also, when we used the spell... The shape that appeared was that of the Replicant bound to your companion. That surprised me. Any reasonable explanation for this phenomenon?_

 

 

... That was one detail Vepar preferred to be left ignored and a question he would rather not answer.

_\- I figure the spell was somewhat altered since we used their life force to recover my energy. Does that seem plausible? I don't think I have a better grasp of your powers than you do._

 

A long silence implied the Grimoire didn't find this explanation plausible at all, or was deeply in thought about that or some other thing.

_\- The form of a Dark Phantom should probably resemble someone involved in casting the spell. When the huge Shade amalgamate cast it, the shapes were likely drawn from the latent memories of its parts, exhibiting the physical traits of their vessels. In our case..._

_\- Is it important? That Replicant is dead now. I doubt they would've allowed it to live even if we served the purpose the unfaithful Gestalts set out for me. I volunteered for the mission precisely to obtain a Grimoire and to get the opportunity to freely leech another Gestalt just like this. I couldn't have passed this opportunity, especially at such a situation._

 

The grimoire floated in the air several times. It did seem to notice that for some reason Vepar was explaining more about why the Replicant had to be ignored in favor of their increased survival and chance at power,  rather than further explaining the spell or the Replicant's origins.

_\- I suppose it doesn't matter. I trusted in you initially, so now, we just need to take the next step and see if it was worth it._

_\- That step being?_

_\- Tell me about your beliefs. Explain this... 'faith' of yours to me more thoroughly than the time allowed in there._

 

Vepar nodded. This one convert, at least, was necessary.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There couldn't be any words uttered between Nier's group and the Façade residents that came to their rescue. Being members of the military, they clearly didn't understand the land's more commonly used tongue to any significant degree, or at least couldn't actually *speak* it. They seemed to be treating them courteously and as allies, and escorted them out of the facility after treating Nier's wounds with some bandages and healing salves. They even brought a cart along, which Kainé managed to get the reluctant Nier into after she agreed to apply some of the healing balm to her wounds on her own. The group seemed to have no problems helping the swordswoman pull her companion along, and were leading her in the direction of Façade.

 

Nier was a sorry sight. Having suffered repeated stab wounds, his armor and clothes were stained a deep red and torn in several spots. He kept his right eye closed, evidently worried about its state and condition; his skin was even paler than usual, his hair utterly disheveled, and nearly all of his limbs seemed to tremble and shudder from exertion, as did his lips.

 

The man walking close to the front of the group was a stark contrast to that state right now. At least as tall as she remembered Nier could be, although somewhat older, he had the slightly tan skin characteristic of the Masked People. His hair was ashen gray in color, despite his age suggesting they should be far from being able to go gray, so he either led a very stressful right or just happened to have that sort of hair naturally. Given his unique mask, position and the skill she displayed, Kainé reasoned he was the Mogul of... Martial matters? War? However they decided to call him, or some sort of champion or direct subordinate of the Moguls. Things would be cleared up when they reached Façade, although it was likely she met at least one person worth getting known in that town now.

She decided not to distract herself with thoughts about him at the point, and took a glance back at Nier, holding some healing balm soaked fabric to his eye.

He looked older at that point than she ever remembered him looking, and the sudden droplets falling into the cart and onto his form made him look sadder, too.

Kainé looked up. The sky got darker and cloudier quickly, and now, a rare sight in the Desert was seen. A small amount of water falling upon its soil, and upon the people traversing it. A gentle, short, and unassuming rain, one that wouldn't even be noticeable were they anywhere else.

 

But it did make Nier's potentially crippled form look all the sadder, yet seemed to reinvigorate the masked man leading his comrades.

 

Worst of all, clouds coming all of a sudden meant that there was no hope the sun would finish her job on this so-called Vepar.

Kainé's mind distracted itself with something else, remembering battles and encounters against Shades she *could* and *did* kill, instead.

 

 

 

It was merely a light drizzle, so when they finally arrived at the city,  they felt refreshed rather than tired and drenched from it. Nier's state did not seem to get any worse, but as soon as they arrived and found one of the people working for the Mogul of Diplomacy, capable of speaking their language, Kainé insisted that they should be allowed to see the best healer in Façade immediately. The uniquely masked gray-haired man seemed to approve of this, and they were  escorted to a new destination.

 

Nier and Kainé both wondered if healing others alone was enough to warrant a position of someone who would eventually help select a King who would start a new dynasty, not to mention helping to govern the city in the meantime. The position was named 'Mogul of Well-being' in translation, which implied healing was a part of it, but it was difficult to say if it would involve actually being the best healer in town

 

The doors were opened by an old, bearded man who actually looked like he could be a wise and experienced healer, but his mask was standard in its look.  He did cast a glance at Nier, but lead them inside where two other people awaited. They seemed to be discussing over some parchment or set of notes. One of them was wearing a unique mask, suggesting they've indeed found themselves in the presence of one of the Moguls; the mask resembled the shape of a face, only with even-armed cross shapes where the mouth and forehead should be, and with eye-holes filled with something resembling red mosaic glass. The man in possession of the mask didn't actually have it on his face, instead resting it on top of his head, revealing his features; a very light shade of facial hair, skin of a similar tone to other Masked People, but combined with a rare, deep red hair color. He seemed young; he had to be between his mid twenties and very early thirties, if one was to guess a 'mogul of well-being' was also good at taking care of their own well-being.

Next to him sat a woman who wore one of the Masked People's regular masks, although she also had it put on the top of her head. Her features resembled the Mogul's own greatly, suggesting they were closely related, and she seemed to be of similar age, too.

\- _Honored guests, this is the family house of our current Mogul of Well-Being, once known as Zwanz. I can leave you here by yourselves if our hosts permit, since both Mogul's father, the venerable Sangoma Bensi, and the Mogul's sister Llun speak your tongue fluently._

 _\- But the Mogul himself doesn't?_ \- Emil asked curiously.

 

 

The older man, apparently some sort of venerable figure himself and Mogul's own father, spoke up at this.

_\- There's only so much knowledge a mind can absorb in a given time, or at all, and keep itself working as well as it can._

_\- I guess that is very much true._ \- Kainé spoke up, glad that they could speak without a translator with more than one person for once. _\- So, one of you three would be considered the best healer in the city, is that correct?_

_\- We're all decent in the art of helping a body mend, I dare say, but it's also well known in our city that my son has already eagerly learned everything I knew before he also learned from our latest esteemed guest. The combined knowledge does make him the best healer in the city indeed._

 

 

The 'esteemed guest' must've been whoever helped them develop a countermeasure to Black Scrawl. That alone was interesting as well, but there were more pressing matters.

_\- We've all been... damaged in a recent fight, but my friend here is seriously hurt. He's been stabbed in the chest repeatedly, I'm worried about his eye, and also there's no way the constant contact with a freezing weapon was good for him. I must request that you take a look at him, and do your best to heal him... We're willing to pay or do whatever else in return._

 

The Mogul's sister turned to him and explained, before standing up herself and looking over both Emil and Kainé. The Mogul also stood up and checked some sort of plan on one of the house's walls before leading them to a side corridor. At the end of it, two rooms that appeared equipped with a bed along with some medicine stashes awaited them. The woman, called Llun by the person who introduced them, stood in the hallway while the Mogul entered one of the rooms with Nier and the father of the two siblings did the same with Kainé. The doors remained open and clearly they intended to let it remain so; Llun was probably expected to provide help and occasionally deliver something in this setup. The request to remove their armors and some of their clothes was followed pretty much without question, with Kainé wondering if any of the trio would let it be known how bad Nier's state was during the procedure.

 

Nier himself could see the Mogul's eyes as they scanned him. Amongst the Masked People, expressions probably weren't something they developed a lot in their life or used a lot to communicate, for obvious reasons, and Nier didn't consider himself all that good at reading them in the first place. As far as he could tell, however, the Mogul's eyes didn't express worry, hesitation, or concern once he finished glancing over the younger man's injuries or when he slid his fingers along Nier's body as if in search for more or looking for a reaction.

If anything, it looked more like disapproval.

 

 

Kainé herself was worried for but a moment when she was treated to experimental touching and barely-clad looking over by the older man. Clearly beyond any lecherousness when it came to healing people, the Mogul's father might've somehow been surpassed by his son somehow - or that was the official version, anyway - but it was clear the old 'Bensi' knew what he was doing and was still a very skilled healer, patching up Kainé's wounds in no time.

 

Mogul himself gave Nier an oddly-colored mixture to drink, although by now they were used to various forms of recovery potions. Preparing several poultices, he pressed them to Nier's wounds after cleaning them and tenderly inspecting some up close, dexterous fingers trying to reveal flesh without causing excess damage or pain. Nier hasn't been wincing more than he already did beforehand, so apparently that was successful.   
  
After a while, the man begun bandaging Nier's body, with his eye just being mildly treated so far. He started saying something in the masked people's own tongue, and continued to do so for a while. Eventually tossing a stern glance towards his sister, Llun begun translating Zwanz' words.

_\- My brother feels you shouldn't be taking part in any more fighting._

 

Kainé almost darted out of her own room, stopped only by the stern grip of the eldest household member.   


_\- What do you mean by that? Are his injuries really so bad? Is there nothing you can do?_

_\- No, it's just his... opinion? Educated guess? Call it how you will. Your young friend's body is being forced to overperform even though its development already seems a little delayed. That might be hurting him in the long run and probably doesn't help his chances in the long run. My brother says he should wait until his final growth spurt is done, and until he's fully matured. He probably means closer to twenty years of age than eighteen, though._

_\- What about his injuries?_

_\- We can cure the bodily ones... This time. It remains to be seen what happens with the eye, however. Because of the nature of potential damage, it's difficult to start healing it without doing more harm than good at first. We're trying to avoid that. Shouldn't you be worrying about your own injuries?_

 

Nier finally spoke up, although his voice was a little coarse.

_\- Kainé's not used to having injuries to be healed in the first place, so she tends to forg..._

 

It was Nier's turn to be treated to a meaningful gaze from Zwanz, and even with the language barrier he could understand. He shouldn't speak yet.

_\-  I... I guess we will need some time away from... life-threatening combat anyway. Let us know once you know anything, please._

 

 

Kainé's voice seemed to be full of conflicting emotion. Hope with resignation and a hint of weighting something over within her mind.

_\- Frankly, the reason I haven't bothered translating at first is because you don't sound, aren't known as, and don't seem in person, to be types that could avoid that sort of... conduct for several years._

 

 

 

Given their state, Nier and Kainé spent the night together with a small number of other patients of the Mogul's household, staying under observation and being cared for. They weren't allowed to do much in the way of exerting themselves at all until midway into the next day, when Kainé was allowed to try walking around - something she took to with vigor, as if showing off how quickly she was getting fine- and Nier was allowed to speak and eat by himself.

Zwanz said something. Bensi, his father, immediately translated.

_\- The good news is my son is fairly sure your bodies will return to their usual state of fitness as long as you rest for the nearest future and allow yourselves to recover. He also says he thinks your friend will see in his right eye, and that its full recovery is a possibility as well, but he can't be sure so early into the treatment._

 

Kainé nodded. Nier's body never looked so battered, and he himself never looked so unlikely and out of place for his tender age. His face looked older than ever with the patch dressing they've put him in, covering a good bit of the right side of his face, along with the eye, and being held just tight enough by intertwining strings that also somewhat covered the left side. A few band-aids were placed here and there on his neck and right cheek, but under said neck he was thoroughly wrapped up. Even though his bandages were being changed pretty often, there was still a slight discoloration, a little bit of it no doubt caused by blood while the majority was just form how many and what quantities of various compatible healing substances and mixtures the Mogul appeared to be using. He was given recovery potions to drink regularly, but interspersed with some other mixtures Kainé couldn't recognize; his food seemed to use more medicinal herbs than actual spice or leaf vegetables. Kainé could only hope and trust that the Mogul knew the exact dose of every substance they were using.  If Nier's status kept deteriorating and if he kept looking that much older as it did, he'd end up resembling a fourty or something year old version of himself before his treatment was over.

 

Nier decided to distract everyone from his physical state and change the topic.  
_\- I apologize for being so direct, but word is your city's research into treating Black Scrawl has finally paid off this time. That you've had some degree of success._  
  
Bensi turned to his son and translated Nier's words, causing the younger man to shake his head a little. His response seemed too detailed and long to be a mere refusal of sharing the information, or a completely negative answer.

_\- Well, it is true that due to our honored guest, we did make some progress fighting against Black Scrawl, but I'd hardly call it treatment, much less a cure, or even a result of our own research. Truth be told, the person who mentored my son and helped elevate him to his position through that knowledge understood our research more than we ever did, but only took minor bits and pieces to contribute to the countermeasure we've been utilizing._

_\- But there IS something that works?_

_\- To an extent. Out of lack of a better word, it solidifies the state Black Scrawl is in for a while, and then helps slow its further progression temporarily, for another boost in time left. But by the end of it all, the sickness seems to develop at the very same pace as it does normally. So it's really only a stalling strategy. It does save our town in more way than one, as a lot of townsmen seems to be developing the illness lately, but..._

_\- ... No matter what, that's still more success than I ever heard of anyone having._

_\- Maybe that is true. For sure, we're forever indebted to our esteemed guest and my son's mentor._

_\- You keep mentioning that 'guest'. Who is he?_

 

 

Llun appeared and spoke up at that.  
_\- *She*.  My brother's mentor was a woman._

_\- I guess that might make her a bigger curiosity to some, but it's not like her being a woman or a man makes her knowledge any more or less unusual and impressive._

_\- Guess that'd depend on the culture... We had a name for her, or rather, a title. I guess it'd translate to something like a 'seer', 'oracle', or 'wisewoman' in your own tongue, so you can feel free to call her any of that. She was wise indeed, and she presented as if she was blind, covering her eyes, but always acted as if she could tell everything happening around her... hence the title._

_\- And also she knew how to stall the progress of Black Scrawl._ \- Kainé and Nier added at once, considering that to be both more odd, and of greater importance.

_\- Either knew, or had a pretty good insight into formulating a way even before she got into touch with our own efforts. I'll have to disappoint you, however... There's more magic than medicine in that 'treatment', in many ways. The reason why we haven't exactly spread knowledge of it is that we're not sure it can be replicated without the tools she left us with._

_\- Tools?_ \- Emil asked, curious about 'magic' and 'tools' being used in one sentence.

_\- There's essentially three phases to the process. The... Seeress? Left us with two staves that help with the process. They have a power about them, one not unlike the power of weapons our Mogul of Martial Matters is using. The process depends on us using the staves to... transmute? Enchant? A piece of pretty much any crystalline substance, changing it into a blue gemstone. We put the gemstone into a piece of jewellery to carry on one's sword-arm. Speaking an incantation in our native tongue while the person wearing the gemstone strikes down a Shade is how the second phase of the process is carried. The essence of the slain Shade alters the gem, and based on its color we know if it is useful for the third part of the process... We don't know what makes the difference, but if the gem turns black, it can't be used... If it turns purple, however, it can be used in the treatment proper._

 

Nier, Kainé and Emil looked towards one another for several moments. While only two of them had the full knowledge of the truth, all three knew quite well there was a connection between Shades and Black Scrawl... And now, the only type of treatment that ever showed any results at all required killing a Shade to have a chance at succeeding. Of course, at some points Façade residents were sure to run out of viable Shades for said treatment, no matter what caused the difference, and there was unlikely to be enough of them to truly treat everyone affected by Black Scrawl right now, let alone if the illness spread further - which Emil and Kainé were certain would be the case.

Emil summed the situation up.

_\- So, because Shades are needed for the treatment to be successful, you only know the way of speaking the incantation in your native tongue, and because you're unsure how to replicate the process without these exact two weapons the 'Seeress' has left you, you didn't spread the knowledge of the treatment out of fear other nearby cities will try to rob you of these resources even if they weren't able to complete it themselves._

_-Yes. Please believe us that we would gladly share the knowledge, but the illness is spreading more than ever and the times are desperate. We can't afford to lose the only way of stalling the sickness to anyone, and would only talk about it or offer it to someone we already trusted implicitly. The fact you even learned about this from our own people is why I explained the process to you... Mostly so I could say why we're not letting other towns in on it. We hope that after Seeress has departed she'll find a way to perfect it, or spread such methods to other towns on her own. She even instructed us to be secretive about it herself._

_\- I see... What is the last stage of the treatment?_  
  


_\- It's oddly mundane as a matter of fact. There's a small list of ingredients that the Seeress picked out  of our previous attempts at treating the illness, mostly herbs and plant fragments, that need to be crushed into paste with the purple gem holding whatever gets extracted out of the dying Shade. Some of the paste is consumed or injected into a patient's body, and the rest is spread over the area already attacked by Black Scrawl. The process never seems to fail as long as a purple gem is available, but its effectiveness doesn't seem to make sense to us yet. Some of the healthiest townsfolk had the shortest respite times from the illness, while occasionally a more sickly person appears to have their Black Scrawl freezed for a much longer time. Matter of fact, that seems to be more of a rule than the reverse, which'd make more sense according to my knowledge of medicine, at least. My brother claims this is because the treatment partially depends on suppressing some natural function in a body to actually work, but even he doesn't understand it._

_\- Thank you for telling us. We'll keep this a secret, but... We might eventually ask for help if any of us or our dearest ones contracts the illness._

_\- Of course. If it's reasonable, I'm sure the town will do what it can to help you. Now, it's time for you two to rest... and mister Emil, I believe you requested to be allowed to help in our healing efforts. Could you come with us so we can discuss what you can do with your special abilities?_

_\- Yeah, sure. Rest well, Nier, Kainé. See you both soon._

 

 

 

 

Kainé might've no longer had actual 'inhuman' regeneration, but she still recovered very quickly. In the following few days, up to the day when she was admitted out, Nier noticed she was clearly taking interest in some things about the city. She seemed very insistent on managing to get someone to translate for her consistently in the near future, up to the point where she requested the schedules of people in the town who could speak their language - and, for some reason, the times when the oddities shop was opened. She asked a little about the Moguls as well, but focused on one in particular.

He stirred a little and woke up when he thought he heard some voices, but not to the extent that anybody would notice. Kainé was talking with someone, and he was just a little too far away to hear everything properly. Still, he could guess what this was about, to an extent.

 

 

_\- I'm sure he'd be glad you're considering this. Truth is, Mogul of Martial matters seemed interested in you even before you arrived. There are rumours (...)._

_\- Do ..u think he'd be convinced to do (...)_

_\- I mean, as lo(...) ..s everything (...) ..u can v.....r fr...ing (...) obeying his command...e can m....nly use ....  I still wonder what's in i...u and ..._

_\- Things are getting m... erous all over t... but we've mostly ...in..all . ...not the sort ...I wanted ...have, but since we're pretty much d... ... togeth ...art, ...need to be ... strong.T... ...it doesn't seem like it'll always be good enough. We've been com...up against r..od...ngs lately, so ...ove ourselves in ...lf place woul... great situation. I...ve been ...ai..with Nier, but ... was no good. I'm not ..., really, even for something like that, so whatev...ing ...uld put ...s insufficient. With Façade's militar...won't just be getting a workout... actually ..e ...aine... ... better ...so...g I'm ...ikely to be able to ... ... ... ...d that's exactly what we need._

_\- ... true ...pared to n...e.., our ... ... actually been effective against the Shades ...ven ... the Mogul... ... over. ..u think... Mogul of Martial Matters' a ... is ...ne... can give ... what you need if... ..._

_\- I... ... ...ure ...f it, ... based on what I've see ...n that plac... he more or less saved us, it'...lly like...  Even if i...s no...tive as I..h. ng ... ..e, we need ... ... your place ... o...ties... may be ac... with some of ..._

 

At this point, they both got further away from him and he stopped paying as much attention to what they were saying. He wished he was able to hear all of it, because what he did hear was... a little too easy to misinterpret with the little information he had and which parts of it he didn't hear.

 

Nier did have several feelings when he saw Kainé's back out of the window, directing her steps towards the more military districts of the city. Curiosity mixed with worry, concern, and some feeling he hasn't really felt often. At all, really. A bit similar to when he thought his mother was spending time focused on other things rather than him and Yonah... actually, a lot closer to what he felt for a moment when he thought Yonah's pen-mate was more of a potential boyfriend.

 

It was an ugly feeling, and he hoped to be rid of it as soon as he could.


End file.
